The Boyfriend Test
by Tsukiko no Yuki
Summary: AU SasuSaku ”Can’t you test him and make him a better boyfriend?” Ino pleaded her. “I trust him with you. After all, it’s not like you’re going to fall in love with him or something.” This could never end well.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto, or else SasuSaku would be canon LOOOOONG ago.

Full Summary: Although Sasuke and Ino may seem like the hottest couple in school, what nobody knows is that there's no chemistry – and definitely no heat – between them because of Sasuke's lack of passion. In a desperate attempt to regain something that's never been there, Ino asks Sakura to test Sasuke and teach him all the little things that makes a perfect boyfriend. However, things become complicated when Sakura realizes she still has feelings for Sasuke… her boyfriend's best friend, and her best friend's boyfriend.

* * *

I remember very clearly what I wanted to be when I was younger.

Like all other girls, I wanted to be a princess. I wanted a Prince Charming

(preferably _him_)

in a shining suit of armor

(or just any clothes, for that matter)

riding on a white horse

(or driving a groovy sports car or a fancy limousine)

to come and rescue me. I wanted to play house, wedding, all the classic childish girly clichés – you name it.

But the moment he asked me, albeit sulkingly –

(_"what're we going to play?"_)

- I knew he'd never do that. Like, never ever. It just wasn't _him_.

He wasn't a Prince Charming. At all.

So, that's why I decided what we should play.

(_"I know, you can be a rockstar, and I can be a model!"_)

Because that was the closest I could get to that princess dream of mine.

We played it everytime. I desperately dreamed that it one day would come true.

I just never pictured that after all those years,

after all the time we've been apart,

that he'd be a rockstar, and that there'd be a model.

Only that that model wasn't me.

It was my best friend.

* * *

**o0.**

"_Haruno Sakura, do you take Uchiha Sasuke as your lawfully wedded husband…"_

_She looked lovingly at him with emerald eyes, shyly pulling away a roseate bang that had gone astray from her face, placing it with the rest of her curled hair hiding beneath the thin fabric of the transparent veil. The priest's voice had already faded away in her mind, and she only just realized she was supposed to answer when the aforementioned gave her a slightly annoyed stare._

"_I do," she merely whispered, her heart thumping faster as a rarely seen smile adorned her lips, that smile that was reserved for her – and her **only.**_

"_Uchiha Sasuke, do you take Haruno Sakura as your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and health?"_

_His lips slowly detached themselves from each other, and the world seemed to move in slow motion; his hands clutched hers just a little bit tighter as his onyx eyes penetrated hers and seemed to gaze into her very soul, creating a moment of perfect bliss when –_

"HARUNO SAKURA!!"

"Huh?"

Sakura jerked awake, her seat belt violently pulling her back as she threw herself forward from the sudden noise. She blinked a couple of times, her eyes trying to readjust, as she rubbed them with a yawn.

"Geez, can't you even stay awake for five minutes?" her best friend scolded her, rolling her azure orbs as she turned to look at her, irritation evident in her glare. "This is important for me, you know!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know." She stifled another yawn as she straightened her back, then quickly grabbed hold of the steering wheel. "Keep your eyes on the road!"

"Aah!" the other girl exclaimed, alarmed; she made a rough turn, dodging a wildly honking truck driver, and then sighed out of relief as Sakura retreated to her own seat. "Don't scare me like that."

Sakura didn't answer. She leaned towards the car window, looking absent-mindedly at the rain pouring down as they swiftly moved past a large billboard sign welcoming them to Otokagure.

"Does my makeup look good?"

Sakura glanced sideways at her; the seemingly fake eyelashes (although she _knew _they were real) were curled perfectly, the rouge on her cheeks was natural, the foundation perfectly smooth, her lips plump with lip balm, lipstick and lipgloss. The bronze Dream Matte Mousse applied to her eyelids sparkled slightly in the glow from a streetlight they were just passing by, and the expensive Dior eyeliner Hinata had gotten her for Christmas seemed to make her baby-blue orbs bigger.

She turned away. "It's okay."

"Really?" Her voice was filled with anxiety. "Are you sure it's okay? I think I'm going to reapply some of the lipliner before we get there. I don't want to look messed up."

"You _never _look messed up," Sakura reassured her tiredly.

"Sakura!" she burst out reproachfully. "This is actually important for me!"

"Relax, it's not like it's the first time you get your face plastered on the cover on some magazine."

"It's not just _some _magazine, Sakura -- _every _magazine is going to be there! Not to mention TV reporters and everything. I even heard something about MTV…"

Sakura ignored her best friend's seemingly endless rant about paparazzi and bad camera angles as they pulled into the VIP parking lot of Arena 101, Otokagure's infamous concert hall. "And you know, no offense to Hinata, but she's no _professional _makeup-artist if you know what I mean –" Ino pulled out a lip-liner out of her petite Louis Vuitton handbag. "- but it's just that –"

_toki wa shizuka ni teku no porisu wo tada hashirisatta_

_wasurekaketeta yume ni kizuita mada tokimeku_

_itsuka mita aoi sora wa yukisaki sae mo tsugezu ni_

"Oh, Sakura, could you get that? I'm a bit busy over here," she sighed as she didn't avert her gaze away from her reflection.

Without responding, she reached into the blonde's handbag, pulling out a purple cell-phone, flinching only the slightest at the name displayed on the screen.

"Who is it? Is it Sasuke-kun? It is, isn't it?" the other excitedly asked.

"… yeah." She flipped open the cell-phone and answered. "Hello? Yeah, we're here now." She observed the current topic from the corner of her left eye, who was hurriedly putting on additional layers of makeup. "… She's just preparing herself. She'll be done by the time you're here. Yeah. Well, see you then. Bye."

"When are they going to be here?"

"In 30 seconds."

"WHAT? But you just said that I'd be – heeey, Sasuke-kun." Her lips quickly quirked upwards into a stunning smile as she gazed into the obsidian eyes of a certain someone standing right outside the window on which Sakura was leaning. The pink-head immediately withdrew, staring, somewhat startled, up at him.

"You look great…," he drawled as he opened up the door, helping Sakura out of the purple sports car, their eyes connecting for a mere second. The reaction was immediate; Sakura tensed, her earlier loose grip on his hand tightening somewhat, her eyes widening as she felt a shiver making its way down her spine.

"… Ino."

* * *

"Can I have your autograph, Neji-kun?"

"Kyaaaa – Sasuke-kun just _looked_ at me –"

"No, you idiot, he was looking at me!"

"Who cares? Did you see Naruto-kun in there?! Was he shirtless?!"

"Kiba-chaaaaan – you're awesome –"

Shutting the door forcefully, the blonde exhaled in relief, then grinned at his fellow band members. "Man, that was one hell of a concert, wasn't it? Hey, did you see that girl in the front row? She looked like she was ready to kill herself when Sasuke-teme sang 'Kogane no Hikari' – and then there was this girl, she was ripping her shirt off, she had the –"

"Dobe, shut up," Sasuke interjected him abruptly, leaning back in the (much to his distaste) bright orange sofa. Said "dobe" glared at him menacingly and opened his mouth to protest, just to once again get interrupted, this time by Hyuuga Neji, the drummer of _Konoha's Golden Leaf._

"I'm going to leave," he announced, deadpan; he glanced at a long-haired, milky-skinned girl sitting neatly in one of the fauteuils close to the door. "Are you coming?"

"N-Neji-onii-s-san," she stuttered, her face turning a deep shade of scarlet as she felt everybody's eyes on her as she spoke, "C-c-can't we st-stay a while l-longer? I-it's a F-Friday, after all…"

"Hinata," he began irritably, "I've strict orders from your father to bring you home before midnight, and –"

"Well, it's not midnight yet, is it, Neji?" Ino's voice sounded calmly from the sofa as she cuddled closer to the very still Sasuke. "C'mon, it's a Friday night and we're in Arena 101, _backstage_. Let the girl have some fun."

The scowl of disapproval that slowly spread its way across Neji's face showed clearly that he had different opinions about the matter, but Naruto, who could clearly feel an argument starting, cleared his throat and said: "Well, I want to have some ramen. How about we get some food, eh? I'm starved after the concert. Aren't you, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura, whose mind had been elsewhere, flushed slightly as she snapped out of her trance, and quickly diverted her jade orbs away from the boy sitting next to her best friend on the sofa when she noticed that he was returning her stare, and instead stared down at her feet, clad with black high-heeled stilettos, matching her black leather jacket that covered her billowy, pink cocktail dress.

"Aa," she responded uncharacteristically quietly, "I am."

"Great! Let's get some ramen, then," the blonde enthusiastically exclaimed, continuing his rant from before about Sasuke's desperate fangirls. But Sakura wasn't listening. She was busy looking at _him_, how close he was, yet so far away.

Then she shook her head. _He is Ino's now._

_Even though he never really was mine._

* * *

Blinding flashlights. Microphones shoved in their faces. Voices from every single direction, drowning them with questions they couldn't even answer even if they wanted to, as the reporters quickly disappeared out of sight, replaced with new ones.

Ino just graciously turned her head so that she somehow managed to face every camera lens, her usual gorgeous smile switched on as she elegantly walked – naturally catwalk-style – down the red carpet, more or less clinging to the lifeless arm of Uchiha Sasuke, who, in contrast to her, wore a face expression harder than stone.

Sakura just proceeded to keep up with her best friend, now and then flashing a shy smile at any camera coming too close.

"Man, you guys sure walk slow."

The pink-head jumped slightly as an arm almost naturally placed itself around her waist, the three's heads jerking towards the source of the sound simultaneously. She could only exclaim his name as she noticed who it was, even though her outburst was drowned in the buzz of the media surrounding them.

Her eyes immediately dashed to the Uchiha, and was astounded to see his left eye twitching the slightest and a frown starting to form.

She blinked in confusion. The frown was gone, and the twitching had stopped.

_Was I dreaming?_

"Naruto, if you walk with _her_ like that, the paparazzi will think you're a couple."

The deadly calm in his voice made Sakura feel at unease, not to mention the way he had said _her_, as though it was something filthy and repulsive. In response, she felt Naruto's arm pulling her closer to him, as he grinned.

"What? Does that bother you?"

The world seemed to revolve in slow motion, just as in Sakura's dream, and she felt her cheeks heat up as she barely dared to look, inquiringly, at Sasuke. Her heart was pounding so fast and so hard she was sure that it'd jump right out of her chest –

"Hn. Give me a good reason why it should."

And he put his other hand in the pocket of his torn jeans, casually turning his back to them and leaving. Along with Sakura's heart, crumbled to pieces, leaving an imaginary trail of roughly scattered shards on the ground.

"Never mind Sasuke. The guy's got a stick up his ass just because he gets to walk with a hot girl and now I do, too."

She smiled softly. _You don't have to explain him._

They proceeded further down the carpet as she leaned closer to his chest, hearing the fast heartbeat that matched her own from earlier, and she knew, only too well, what he was thinking. What she was feeling.

Just like he knew about her thoughts and feelings.

She knew that she should have felt bad for using him that way.

But it made it so much easier

(_for both of them_)

to pretend,

(_that they had the hearts they knew they'd never get, one of them pretending she was beside another person, the other pretending that he was that other person **for her**_)

when she had somebody to lean on

(_and somebody who could be there anytime for her, who'd give up everything her, making her feel safe_)

and somebody to support her all the way down that be-damned crimson path of fame.

* * *

Okay, that was the prologue... it'll get much better, I promise. I'm sorry if it turned out a bit cheesy, I just wrote that. o.o;; I've had this idea in my mind for some time now (even though it wasn't my intention to make them rock stars/models, I swear!), so I just wanted to try it out. Review, please?

P.S: In case you wonder, the song playing on Ino's cell phone is Stainless Night, and the song Naruto was talking about, Kogane no Hikari. Both of them are sung by Sasuke's seiyuu, Noriaki Sugiyama.


	2. o1: sweet talk 101

**Disclaimer:**I don't own Naruto, unfortunately. I wish I did, because that'd mean I'd know what'd happen next in the series. I don't own the song "Sweet Talk 101" either, it's the band Cute Is What We Aim For's.

* * *

You remember when you were a little kid and you just wanted all your friends to be friends with each other, so you could all hang out?

Yeah. I wasn't very different.

(_"C'mon, Ino-chan, I promise he isn't a weirdo!"_)

Even though he said we weren't _friends _per se –

(_not that I knew what 'per se' meant, but I just figured it was something grown-ups say, like,  
"eat your vegetables", and "make your bed", and you don't have to know the meaning behind it_)

- I still wanted the three of us – my only friends – to be together.

(_"Sasuke-chan, that's Ino-chan. Ino-chan, this is Sasuke-chan.")_

So that's why I introduced them to each other.

(_"Don't call me that, Sakura."_)

He just looked kind of bored, but she couldn't take her eyes off him.

(_"Ne, ne, Sakura, he's really cute!"_)

And there hasn't been a day that I didn't regret that I did that.

* * *

**o1.**

"Ugh, Forehead Girl... pass me the ice," she croaked as she leaned across the kitchen counter, stretching her left arm forward to accept it as the pink-haired girl searched through the freezer.

Sakura did as she was told and then surveyed her best friend with a sigh. Her usually perfect golden hair was a mess, the makeup smudged, and exhaustion was visible in her otherwise lively eyes. She was wearing a worn, overly large T-shirt with "Konoha High Soccer Team" on it.

But something else caught her eye even more; it was the text "Uchiha 07" on the back of the shirt as Ino turned and proceeded back to her room.

Arching a finely plucked eyebrow, Sakura asked with the calmest voice she could muster, "Don't tell me you had that _specially made_?"

"Huh?" Ino spun around, still pressing the plastic bag filled with ice cubes to her forehead. Following Sakura's gaze, her face cracked into a mischievous grin. "Oh, you mean this? Of course not. I saw it in Sasuke-kun's wardrobe, so I asked if I could have it. And he said yes. Actually, he said 'Hn', but I just figured that meant yes."

"You want his _old sweat_ on you or something? He hasn't been on the team for years, and he probably hasn't washed it for that long too." Sakura raised the can of Diet Coke she had bought on the way to her best friend's house, and drained some of the icy liquid, making a grimace as she put it down.

"Well, since he obviously doesn't want to share his _new _sweat that much, if you know what I mean, I can only get his _old _sweat… oops, I was too graphic again, wasn't I?"

"Just a tad."

"Sorry," Ino's grin widened. "I'll be ready in five minutes."

And only when Ino had gone out of sight into her room did Sakura allow herself to let go of her spasmodic hold of the can, leaving a tiny, yet deep mark, where her thumb had been.

* * *

"Oi, dobe. Wake up."

"Mommy, let me sleep for a while longer…"

Uchiha Sasuke's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Idiot, I won't let you sleep for longer, and I'm definitely not your mother. Now get the hell out of the bed."

"… mm… Sakura-chan…"

At the mention of her name, he visibly flinched. Then, sighing with irritation, he promptly pulled the blonde out of the bed, who screeched loudly upon hitting the wooden floor.

"Ouch… what the hell was that for, bastard!?" Naruto yelled as he glared up at his arch-enemy, rubbing his sore head as he sat up. "And what the hell are you doing in _my _house?!"

"To wake you up, dumbass. Now get dressed, we're supposed to be in class in twenty minutes. And it's my house anyway, I'm the one paying the rent."

"No, you're not! I pay half the bills! And it's _my _room, at the very least," he stubbornly replied as he crossed his arms, his sapphire eyes turning to slits, making him look like a comic book character. The corner of Sasuke's mouth twitched for a nanosecond at the sight of the child-like adolescent.

"No, you idiot. _I_ pay for the bills. _You _pay for the ramen."

"And you _eat _the ramen!"

"No, I don't. I eat my tomatoes and onigiri. _You _eat ramen."

"That's because you're afraid of getting fat, you girl," Naruto retorted as he threw his pillow (which Sasuke effortlessly dodged) at him, rising up from the floor. "How Ino even fell for a stick like you is beyond me."

"Hn." Sasuke turned away, walking towards the threshold on the other side of the room. "She has good taste. And I'm not a stick. Unlike you, I actually have well-trained muscles."

"Actually, the thought of you even having a girlfriend is surprising. I always thought you were gay, you know. I still think you are – I just think you're in denial."

Naruto fell headfirst back onto the floor as the pillow effectively hit his face full-force, joined by the latest issue of _Playboy_, leaving a large, square red mark on his face.

* * *

_It's kind of a given that the two of them would end up together_, a voice that sounded strangely like Ino's said in Sakura's mind as she tried to not listen to said blonde's loud (and rather out of tune) singing to Avril Lavigne's _Sk8erboi_ whilst driving.

"_Sorry girl but you missed out – well, tough luck, that boy's mine now_ –"

Ino was the girl you saw on the cover of _Teen Vogue _and_ CosmoGIRL!_ and in the makeup ads. She was the girl you only saw or read about, the kind of girl who attended glamorous parties and met famous people. She was beautiful and both athletically and academically skilled – although lesser in the latter field, but she was captain of the cheerleading squad – and she was the girl every girl wanted to be, and every guy wanted to be seen with.

The kind of girl Sakura used to pretend she was when she was younger.

"_We are in love, haven't you heard – how we rock each other's world –_"

Sasuke was the kind of guy you saw on posters and CD covers, the guy who appeared in MTV videos. He was the guy you only heard or read about, the kind of guy who was invited to every event worth mentioning and who interacted with celebrities on a daily basis – heck, he was one himself. He was handsome and both athletically and academically skilled – he was top of the class and used to be the captain of the soccer team – and had about a dozen fanclubs or more. He was the guy every guy wanted to be, and every girl wanted to be seen with.

The kind of guy Sakura used to pretend she was seen with.

"_I'm with the Sk8erboi, I said see ya later boi – I'll be backstage after the show –_"

Everybody had predicted when they hit puberty that the two of them would end up together as a couple. She was perfect. He was perfect. They were meant to be together.

The kind of Type A Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu that everybody idolized. Their only matches were themselves, because nobody else was good enough for them.

As Neji would say, fate wanted it to be that way. And nothing could change that.

"_I'll be at his studio – singing the song he wrote –_"

But sometimes, just sometimes, Sakura wished that destiny was wrong.

"_- about the girl he used to knooooowww…_"

"Aren't you supposed to be having a hangover?" she asked as the song faded away, and the radio speaker announced what the next song would be.

"Well, I'm trying to focus on something else but my headache, aren't I?" Ino responded lightly as she leaned against the window frame, yawning widely.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"Geez, what's with you anyway? Are you PMS-ing? I bet you are. You were _such a bore _at last night's party."

"You don't need to be drunk and Frenching somebody to have fun, Ino."

"Well, aren't you contradictive. I saw you having some action going on last night with Suigetsu -anything promising?"

Sakura laughed at the thought of the turquoise-haired boy with the shark-like teeth that had shamelessly flirted with her the night before. "Suigetsu? Are you kidding me? It's so obvious he has something going on with Karin, I swear."

"Yeah, not that it should stop you or anything if you really _had _something going on with Suigetsu, but – Sasuke-kun wouldn't be pleased."

Silence. Then, "Aa."

"So, what about Naruto?"

"_What about_ Naruto?"

"Well, the whole arm-around-your-waist thing after the concert. I mean, the paparazzi will write that you're a couple."

The be-damned rock music had started again. Sakura secretly wondered whether or not she should change the channel. But if she did, Ino would probably kill her – this channel frequently played Sasuke's songs, and she wouldn't miss them for the world.

_You have a jump in your step, but a rip in your, a rip in your rep -_

She shrugged, faking lack of concern. "So?"

"Yeah, well. If you aren't, it must upset you, so that must mean you are. Why didn't you tell me anything!? And oh my God. His fangirls are going to kill you."

"Anything what? Nothing has happened." Sakura chose to ignore the last remark. She suppressed a shudder at the thought of the rabid fangirls stalking the band members everyday; Sasuke harbored the greatest amount naturally, but Naruto still had his fair share of fans.

- _so be sure to be proud -_

"So how can you suddenly be a couple if nothing has happened?" Ino inquired stubbornly. "Something _must _have happened."

"Other than him putting an arm around my waist… nope."

"Geez, aren't you two _passionate_," she remarked sarcastically. "Even _me and Sasuke_ do more than _that_. Speaking of which…"

_- and don't forget you're not allowed to brag -_

There was a lingering, tense silence in the air. Only the rock music Sakura so faithfully despised coming out of the car's speakers could be heard as Ino exhaled heavily next to Sakura, whose face expression remained stoic; although, at a closer glance, her face features were slightly scrunched in annoyance.

"… can you do me a favor?"

* * *

"Man, that was an awesome gig last night, I swear." Naruto exhaled delightfully as he gulped down the last remains of his soda can, carelessly slamming it to the wooden surface of his desk. "Not to mention the after-party! You guys remember right? Club Sound? Geez. That sure was something, wasn't it? Did you see – ow, what the hell was that for, Sasuke?! Damn it, it's the second time you've hit me this morning!"

The considerably shorter blonde growled in displeasure at the soot-haired boy who had successfully whacked him in the head with a rather thick book with the words "English Literature" printed on the front of it.

"That –," he released an exasperated sigh from his lips that made the girls lurking outside the classroom swoon, "- was because you made my eardrums bleed with your exceedingly loud voice."

Naruto proceeded to glare at him angrily. The other two present, namely a certain Hyuuga Neji and his cousin, reacted by doing their usual Saturday morning routine – Neji rolled his pasty eyes and declared indifferently that he was going to buy himself a coffee to ease his headache, and Hinata nervously tried to divert Naruto from starting a fight with Sasuke, thus earning himself another well-deserved detention.

"Um, I… N-Naruto-k-kun, S-Sasuke-kun, I think y-you did… great… last night…" The last three words were barely decipherable, but her attempt was successful; Naruto promptly turned away from his arch-enemy.

"Thanks, Hinata! You were at the Club too, right? Don't you think it was just GR-R-R-EAT?!"

"You _seriously _need to stop eating something besides Kellogg's Frosted Flakes and ramen, dobe."

"I do too! I eat McDonalds and Burger King and KFC –"

"I beg your pardon – I didn't realize you were _that _healthy. So, basically, your daily intake of nutrients does _not _only consist of cereal, which by the way has a horribly childish and not to mention, _badly drawn_ cartoon animal on it, and ramen, it _also _includes junk food."

"Well, unlike you, Sasuke-_chan_, I don't need to go on a diet to have girls like me."

"That is because no girls will like you even if you _did_."

"You - !"

"My, my, do you _never _stop fighting?" a rather bored voice cut across Naruto's ongoing outburst as the three acknowledged the arrival of the newcomers. "Good morning, Naruto – Hinata-chan – _Sasuke-kun_."

At the mention of the latter, he simply uttered a "hn" and regained his usual careless pose as he leaned against one of the desks, shoving his calloused hands into the pockets of his black pants. Naruto scowled at the beaming blonde who implanted a kiss on the cheek of Sasuke, but his face expression instantly brightened considerably at the sight of the roseate-haired girl who watched soundlessly, although intently, the two's public display of affection.

"Good morning, Sakura-chan!"

Swiftly snapping back to reality, she snatched her eyes away from the couple in a rather startled manner, but calmed down when she saw the blonde; a smile crept onto her face, and she returned his greeting half-heartedly.

"Oh, how rude of me," Ino suddenly exclaimed after having automatically attached herself to Sasuke's – once again – lifeless arm, "you were saying, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata flushed a deep shade of scarlet when she noticed everybody setting eyes on her, and started fidgeting nervously as she stared at the white floor below their feet, "Um, I-I-I was just s-saying I th-thought they performed w-wonderfully. L-last night, th-that is."

Naruto stared, amazed, at the other blonde, as though he had come to see her in a completely different light. "How the hell did you know she was saying something when you just arrived?"

"Duh," Ino rolled her azure orbs with a '_you're-so-stupid_' look, "you just shouted her name so loud everybody in the corridor could hear it. You really _are _a loudmouth, Naruto."

He grimaced sullenly as he crossed his arms, his eyes turning into slits reminiscent of cartoon felines, "It's true what they say, that couples really become more and more like each other the more time they spend together. Sasuke-teme has affected you too much."

At the word "couples" Sakura turned her eyes away from the rest on the group and rested them on her black sneakers adorned with a pattern of pink skulls in the form of cherries, trying to focus on the heart-shaped eyes of the skulls. Ino made an exasperated noise to begin her monologue, but was interrupted by Neji's reappearance; he raised a dark eyebrow at the sight of the two new girls as he raised the paper mug filled with steamy, hot coffee to his lips.

"Hi, Neji," Ino greeted with a – not very unusual – dashing smile. "Why are you drinking coffee anyway? You didn't get a hangover, did you? Wow, that'd be new – almighty Hyuuga Neji getting drunk." She gestured dramatically with an exaggerated dreaminess, and gazed with a far-away look at the wall behind them.

"I'd never get drunk for my life," he deadpanned, taking another sip. Naruto turned to stare in confusion at the wall, then glanced sideways at Ino, following her gaze just to look even more puzzled.

"I know. I was just kidding." She lowered her hands, having detached herself from Sasuke, just to raise them again in a 'whatever'-pose. "You're too defensive of poor Hinata-chan; you'd never lower your guard, especially not in a _club_, when you're busy being her bodyguard. The girl didn't even dance last night – it's not like she's going to get raped the minute she sets foot on the dancefloor, Neji."

"Don't tell me what to do or not to do, Yamanaka," he rumbled acidly in reply. "Just because you're dating Uchiha doesn't mean you have any right to tell me off."

A tense silence, as the calm before a storm, followed after his statement. Hinata smiled anxiously, fidgeting again as she spoke up, "I-It's okay, Ino-chan. I-I'm not m-much of a d-dancer, anyway. I was just th-there to see the b-band."

"Speaking of which," Ino wondered curiously, having once again neared the unmoving Uchiha, "How come Naruto doesn't sing? I mean, you're one of the founders of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, right?"

"That's because he sings like a girl," both miscellaneous band members deadpanned in unison.

"HEY!"

As Naruto and Sasuke started another one of their pointless verbal fights, Ino instead turned her attention to her until-then best friend, who had remained silent throughout the entire conversation. "Sakura… why are you so quiet nowadays?"

"I'm tired today," Sakura responded, her voice devoid of any emotion.

"Well, so am I. But still. We're doing our best trying to stay awake. I mean, just look at Naruto." Ino gestured towards the aforementioned, who was busy shouting insults while spraying Sasuke with saliva. The latter wiped his face with the sleeve of his school uniform shirt in irritation. "Okay, so he's a bit too much, but still. You're like a _zombie_, even when you're not tired. What's with you?"

She didn't quite meet Ino's piercing stare as she tried to swallow, but the lump in her throat had somehow, incredibly enough, increased in size, making her feel uncomfortable. She felt for tugging at her tie, but judged against the better and tried not to choke.

"I…"

"… and _you_ are _always_ stealing my turn in the spotlight! You're such a show-off, I didn't even get to talk to Sakura-chan _once _last night when we brought Ino home, I bet you were _hitting on her_ in Ino's bedroom when you were alone –"

Naruto's high-volume outburst toned out at the sight of Sasuke's dark expression as Sakura felt her blood turn to ice; averting her gaze even farther away from her best friend, another moment of intensity that seemed to make everybody temporarily mute followed – only broken by the sound of the bell.

"I'm going to go to class," Neji promptly announced as he started to walk away. The others agreed in a half-hearted murmur as they departed separate ways; Naruto clutching his bag tightly as he walked away at a half-fast pace; Ino with a tiny frown on her beautiful features as she clung to Sasuke's arm, inquiring an explanation without words, his face shadowed by his dark bangs; Hinata worryingly – and somewhat hesitantly – turning her back towards the group as she followed Naruto; leaving Sakura who stayed put in her position, stiff as rock.

"Haruno."

Sakura's head shot up at the sound of her name, and she contemplated the well-defined back of Neji as he stopped on the threshold of the now empty classroom.

"I'd advise you to be more careful. Even though your face and voice do not, your actions betray your emotions."

She tore her eyes away from his back, and instead looked outside of the window. _It's still raining_.

"And unless you want to tear this group apart even more than it already is, I'd rather prefer if you controlled your feelings with more caution."

Saying no more, he only proceeded to walk further away from her.

* * *

_The arch in your eyebrows can tell the truth_

_Just imagine what your back can do…_

* * *

Sakura decided only a year ago that she hated rock songs with her heart and soul.

That's what had been her excuse the first few hundred times Ino had tried to drag her out to _Konoha Golden Leaf's_ concerts. But of course, Ino's reinforcements (namely Naruto and Kiba) had naturally forced her to go anyway. But at least it had been an excuse not to keep every single rock song they sent her via instant messaging on her mp3-player.

She gently wagged – although it was barely noticeable – to and fro to the slow tune of RnB, but was disturbed by the annoying noise of loud drums from the person behind her. Turning her volume up, her irritation increased as she realized the person had turned up the volume as well, and rocking violently back and forth to the sound of the music, the person's legs effectively kicking her seat.

Turning towards the window of the bus, she decided that God really liked to screw her over.

"_Stop living in the fantasies of that thick, cotton candy-colored head of yours, Haruno._"

She shivered slightly at the memory of his painfully icy voice, and shrugged, as though hoping to shrug off the memory as easily. Even without that on her mind, she still had a lot to be, in his terms of speaking, _annoyed_ by.

First of all, Naruto's _annoying _fangirls who had almost _beheaded _her –

(_although thankfully Naruto had rescued her; not that she couldn't deal with those __**annoying **__brainless bitches that only knew how to do back-flips or wave their pompoms_)

- and then the sudden _annoying_ announcement that she and Naruto were _a couple_ –

(_even though, technically, all they had done was to walk down the red carpet with his arm around her waist with the __**annoying**__ paparazzi photographing away like crazy, it wasn't like they had __**kissed**__ or anything)_

- and the fact that she had to drive Ino to the _annoying _school but she had cheerleading practice so she had to stay after school whereas Sakura had to go –

(_meaning that she was forced to take the __**annoying**__ bus where everybody gawped at her like she was some kind of gorilla wearing a banana costume selling cookies just because she was the famed "entourage" of _Konoha's Golden Leaf _and Ino)_

- not to mention Ino's annoying _request_. So now she was forced to go all the way to the outskirts of Konoha for the sake of the aforementioned.

And now there was a stupid rocker kicking the seat of her chair.

_How annoying._

Sakura only managed to stifle the oncoming, hollow laugh that had threatened to emit from her lips. _Well, now I know at the very least how it must feel like living every day with a stick up my ass._

The drums did not cease to beat from behind. As a matter of fact, it had been added with an additional _annoying _guitar.

"Can you please turn down the volume of your stupid music?" Sakura finally swirled around in her seat, facing the culprit caught in his crime act, a thoroughly displeased frown taking place on her face, her jade eyes glimmering with irritation. "And you know, you _can _actually listen to music without having to _kick me in my ass_, literally!"

The boy sitting behind her slowly straightened up in the chair, the shadow of his dark hood having covered his face, that had also faced his black Converse shoes with deep wine-red fangs printed onto them, and grinned widely from ear to ear. "Well, well, well, took you long enough to turn around, Sakura."

She flinched. "You…!"

* * *

_With that façade, you can do no wrong…_

* * *

"Give me a K! Give me an O! Give me an N! Another O! An H! And an A! What does that spell? Konoha, Konoha, _Konoha_!" yelled the chanting girls in unison as several of them jumped high in the air, the others twirling around like ballerinas gone wild in _mini_-mini-miniskirts.

"Good job, girls," Ino shouted gleefully at the attentively listening crowd of teenage doppelgangers, all of them fashioning stick-like legs, an unhealthily thin waist and a face that looked as though an entire makeup store had exploded in it. "Let's do the same routine next week, and I'll show you some new moves!"

"Ino-chan," one of the girls piped up unhappily, "next week the Suna siblings will throw this _awesome _party, I hear all celebrities are invited to it –"

"I really wanna go too," another cut the first off abruptly, "it sounds _sooo _much fun! Wow, last night really left me wasted…"

"C'mon, guys, I know it sucks that we've to attend school on a Saturday – blame Tsunade-sama for that – but we seriously need to practice," Ino scolded sternly, "the cheerleading championship is in less than two months."

"But so is the _Konoha's Golden Leaf'_s concert," the vice-captain of the cheerleading squad Ami added smugly. "And since Tsunade-sama is planning to hold both events the same night, I think it's safe to say that none of them will be actually focusing that much on _us_. They'll be waiting impatiently for the performance after ours."

"But still, I –" Ino's eyes, that had desperately traveled through the crowd of the scowling cheerleaders darted to the clock on the brick wall of the gym and gasped audibly, much to the other girls' surprise. "Damn! I'm supposed to be somewhere else! Okay, Ami, why don't you take over and wrap things up for today, and I'll tell you guys when the next practice is going to be by putting it up on the billboard or something – I've really got to go – bye – bye – bye – bye…"

In a sense that greatly reminded her of digging her way through a crowd of paparazzi reporters, she flung herself among the cheerleaders, kissing each cheerleader on the cheek (although she didn't do _that_ do the reporters) before exiting the gym in a rush, not even bothering to change. Pushing the door open forcedly, she almost crashed head-first into the broad chest of a taller boy. Looking upwards, she only furrowed her thin, pale gold eyebrows, crossing her arms in a challenging pose as the boy didn't move out of the way.

"I need to talk to you, Ino," Naruto began, but was rudely interrupted by the previous;

"I'm in a hurry, Naruto." She tapped her sneaker-clad shoe with an obvious impatience as she grabbed the hair-band that kept the blonde horsetail put and ripped it off, cascading the ramen-addict with a wave of shampoo smelling of exotic flowers.

"Sasuke can wait, he won't die out of waiting a couple of minutes." He mimicked her face expression, crossing his arms in irritation. "It's important."

"Look, I'll pick up ramen from Ichiraku on my way to you guys' place tonight, okay? And I'll rent that American movie you've been talking about, too – _American Pie_, or whatever. Anyway, I've got to go now, Naruto, if you'll just –"

"Sasuke, Sasuke!" exclaimed the latter in annoyance. "Is there nothing else on you girls' minds? Listen, this is important –it's about Sakura-chan –"

The reaction was immediate; Ino's sapphire eyes widened in mere surprise, but then turned away, an undecipherable look taking its place as she bit her lower lip in what seemed to be in deep thought. However, thinking didn't take her too long as she swiftly pushed her way past Naruto in the doorway, and ran for it, leaving him to stare at her retreating back.

* * *

_Many will enter,_

* * *

"Took you long enough," the boy repeated as he drew his hood back, revealing messy hazel hair and onyx eyes – as well as a stunning, wide grin, revealing his fang-like teeth, impishness implied in the boyish smile. "Man, my legs hurt from kicking you so hard."

"Kiba," Sakura uttered his name, seemingly out of breath. Then, waking to life, she quickly frowned and questioned, "Why weren't you in school today?"

The aforementioned rolled his eyes, shrugging as though to say '_whatever'_. "I _knew _you'd ask me that. Well, I figured I'd skip school, what with the hangover and all. Whoever decided that we should've school on a Saturday, anyway?"

"Tsunade-sama decided that, and you can't just skip school because you've a hangover! You should go to Tsunade-sama instead. Or Shizune-san. They'd give you some painkillers or something."

Fixating her with a lazy stare, he inquired, "What happened to you today?"

The pink-haired female's frown only sought to deepen further. "Don't change the topic! And what do you mean, '_what happened to you today_'?"

"Well, first of all –," he raised his hand and pulled down his index finger to the palm of his hand as though he was counting, "- you and Naruto were more or less _cuddling _in front of paparazzi. I'm surprised to find you haven't been killed yet. Secondly -," he pulled down his middle finger, "- you're taking the wrong bus home. A bus that only passes the rich kids' quarters, which means you're going to see a rich kid, which you never do, and thirdly -," he pulled down his ring finger, his sneer broadening, "- you're acting like a total bitch, what with your yelling before and all, which is totally unlike you. Any questions?"

Silence followed. Sakura stared intently at the last, remaining finger on Kiba's hand that stayed upright – namely the little finger. Slowly, she stretched out her own, petite hand that had ivory, smooth skin, grabbing Kiba's hand, that in stark contrast to her own fashioned slightly tanned, calloused skin, and brought it closer to herself.

His eyes widened as she seemed to bring it closer to the utmost, lowest point of her (not-so-deep) cleavage of her crimson shirt; and the size didn't cease to increase as she seemed to bow her head slightly as though she faced the finger, licking her lips with the tip of her tongue as though in concentration…

Then, in one swift move, she lowered her lips to the finger and sank her teeth into it as far as she could.

"OWWW, YOU BUBBLEGUM-HEADED BITCH!"

* * *

_but few will win,_

* * *

It was an unusual sight to see Yamanaka Ino still present in the school building after the last bell had rung. However, as this was seemingly an unusual day in general, the blonde only proceeded further down the almost-deserted, white-painted corridors of Konoha High, ignoring curious stares from what the cheerleaders labeled as "brainiacs with no life", and what the rest of Konoha High's population referred to as plain "nerds".

_Classroom 10… classroom 10…_

The azure orbs traveled hastily from door to door. Numbers in an disarrayed order followed, and she almost shrieked in frustration as she reached the end of the corridor, and still did not find what she had sought for.

_Where the HELL is classroom 10!?_

"U-um…," a squeaky voice piped up unsurely. Ino's eyes dashed to the source of the sound, which was a rather large(Ino avoided the word _fat_ as the word was thoroughly misused among models) boy, who, in great difference to the rest of the other remaining students did not wear any glasses nor had any study material available. Instead, he was tugging nervously at one end of his package of potato chips.

"What?" she snapped, more menacing than she had intended.

The poor large (_not fat not fat not fat_) boy recoiled in fear. "I, um, thought you look a bit, er… l-lost."

She heaved a deep sigh, and considered her options. She could either ignore him because of the possibility that he was wasting her time, or she could dash around between the endless amount of classrooms without ever finding her goal.

She glanced sideways at the boy that was now quivering in anxiety. _He probably knows the way – judging by how he looks, he's probably one of those that never go home, so he should know the school well._

"Yeah," she answered, her voice sounding just as drained of fatigue as she felt, "I'm looking for classroom 10. You've any idea where it is?"

* * *

_so please be sure,_

* * *

Sakura inhaled the fresh air of the outskirts of Konoha – surprisingly not tainted by the great amount of petrol used in this area because of the inhabitants' laziness – and exhaled in relief as she watched the pale-green bus disappeared out of sight in the distance.

She considered herself lucky to have distracted Kiba long enough to get to the actual bus stop where she had intended to leave at. While Kiba was not of the brightest kind – albeit his intelligence was of higher level than Naruto, which didn't say much – their friendship had lasted far too long, so he knew her too well, and like Neji, he was very observant.

_It's bad enough Neji knows_, thought she as she walked down the path leading to the final destination of her long trip. As she passed by large ornaments that resembled pieces of art stolen from a museum, her thoughts once again returned to her original mission. Her face expression darkened as she recalled his words.

"_Don't try to play friendly with me, you know as well that I that it's not going to happen."_

(She pushed her headphones brutally further into her ears, grimacing as though she didn't want to listen)

"_I don't know what you're thinking, anyway – or let me correct myself; you're not thinking at all."_

(and she wanted his stupid, loathsome, sexy voice to stop saying those harsh words, to _shut up_)

"_Didn't I tell you then to never speak to me again? And look, here you are, thinking we can be _friends _again after all you've said and done."_

(shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up _shut up_)

"_Don't get any ideas just because you're friends with my girlfriend, Haruno. Not that I see the reason why she even wants to be seen with you. Nor why the blockhead likes you so much. But his taste in women mainly consists of those who're utterly annoying, women like you."_

(_shut up shut up shut up shut up __**SHUT UP**_)

"_So let me just tell you one thing: get lost."_

"Didn't I tell you to get lost?"

Her head shot up at the sudden voice, her heart beating frantically as a lump lodged itself in her throat – she automatically assumed it was her heart – and her jade eyes widened, before she turned away, blinking away the tears that had threatened to form.

Instead, she focused all her energy on quirking her lips upwards. "Hi, Sasuke-kun."

* * *

_to read the_

* * *

"Thanks!" Ino flashed an award-winning smile at the furiously blushing boy as she eyed the old classroom door with the number '10' carved into it in black. "Geez, I can't believe I've been here for two years and I still don't know all the classrooms."

"Y-you're welcome," he stuttered, returning her smile with an obvious shyness. "You… want some potato chips?" He reached out the bag of the BBQ-flavored chips to her, but she only shook her head kindly.

"No, thanks. Models got to stay thin, so we can't eat chips." She paused before her gaze returned to the classroom door. "Well, I'm going in. See you!"

"See you too!" His words clumsily came out of his mouth before his face reddened to the same color of a tomato, and he walked away at a brisk pace (or what Ino assume was a fast pace; it looked as though he was doing his best, although his footsteps were slow).

She watched him for a couple of seconds before returning her attention to what was before her. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the door open hastily and walked in, her famous smile once again switched on as she eyed the sole resident of the room; a boy with an incredulous stare, and (much to her disbelief) a horsetail reminiscent of a pineapple who had stopped playing what seemed to be chess at the sudden entrance.

"Hi, I'm Yamanaka Ino, and I'm going to be your tutor! What's your name?"

* * *

_fine print!_

* * *

She stopped walking.

Not that she needed to continue; she was already at her final destination, or at least a couple of meters away; it was the Uchiha mansion. Just the sight of it awakened painful memories.

His obsidian eyes narrowed to mere slits; but still, at that thin width, Sakura could detect the icy hatred leaking out from the infinitely thick barrier that seemed to divide him from her. "What the hell are you doing here?"

She lowered her gaze, and stared firmly at his shoes; he, differently from everybody else in their little group, did not wear Converse – he fashioned worn, plain white sneakers that still had some dirt on them, in contrast to the others' brand-new, differently-patterned shoes. Her eyes trailed to her own, and sadness appeared in her forced smile as she realized what she was wearing herself.

"What about you?" she responded softly. "You don't live here anymore, you know."

The Uchiha growled in an animalistic manner as his glare intensified. "What the fuck do you want, Haruno?"

_The million-dollar question._ She inhaled another dose of fresh air – but this time, it didn't embrace her with relief. Despite the oxygen intake, she felt as though she couldn't breathe – as though there wasn't enough air – as though she was being choked by an invisible hand.

_His _hand.

(The same feeling as before, in the classroom.)

"Sasuke-kun…," she began, as her gaze traveled from his feet up to his disgruntled face, surveying the in-betweens; his baggy, light jeans, his white shirt with "Konoha Soccer Club" written on the front (_does he have another one, or did Ino return it?_), his black leather jacket, the raven hair that was in its usual chicken's-ass-style.

"… could you do me a favor?"

* * *

TA-DAAAH! I hope you guys like this chapter. I've to tell you, I was kinda nervous how it'd turn out, because you guys seemed to like the prologue, which I was really surprised about - so I did my best with this one.

And oh, I just had to add that Naruto-sings-like-a-girl thing. For those watching the Japanese version of the anime, Naruto's seiyuu is actually a girl, so that's where it came from. I was looking for songs on YouTube when I realized that the only songs by Naruto's seiyuu are songs about guys and stuff, which'd make Naruto gay... which he isn't - in this story, anyway.

It kind of annoys me (heheh) that the lyrics don't exactly match what's happening in the fic. But yeah...

Similar to Fear of the Light, you've to be attentive concerning some specific details in this fic, because they might matter later on. But you don't have to read it all attentively if you don't want to - if you don't understand later on, just ask and I'll glady answer.

Thanks so much for all the reviews, guys!! Now please review and tell me what you think about this! n.n


	3. o2: the bittersweet

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, neither do I own Whitney Houston's song "Same Script, Different Cast".**

* * *

A lot of people said that they had never seen a more bizarre pair.

(_Although I often thought that I had seen weirder. For instance, Tom and Jerry. Or Peter Pan and Tinkerbell. But whatever)_

They were like water and fire, light and dark – well, just any polar opposite metaphors imaginable.

(_My personal metaphor was the sun and the rain; even though I liked sunny days very much, because I could play outdoors, I always preferred rain, because even though it was wet and cold against the skin, it also was soothing and lovely and just_ beautiful)

How they became friends – and even more peculiarly, best friends – is beyond me, and everybody else.

(_But then again, I became best friends with Ino. Forehead Girl and Miss Popular aren't exactly twins either)_

A lot of people said that perhaps, these two strange boys saw a unique quality in each other that nobody else shared, something that they both had in common.

(_Well, besides wealth and a family with a good reputation and the fact that they seemed to loathe each other very much_)

I know that I could. I saw that quality more clearly than anybody else – loneliness.

(_After all, it's easy to identify something you have yourself)_

Maybe that's why I felt more attached, more close to them than I ever did with Ino.

(_Because no matter how many secrets we shared, no matter how close we were, there was always something missing.)_

Maybe that's why we ended up falling in love with each other and become even lonelier than before.

* * *

**o2.**

Konoha High had a, as Ino had discovered the other day, vast variety of randomly numbered classrooms – several of them served as homerooms for the different classes, but as the homeroom for each class varied from year to year, many of them were left deserted and unused until a new class arrived.

One of these seemingly deserted classrooms included classroom number 10, and mainly because of this reason, Nara Shikamaru preferred spending his afternoons during days with foul weather, such as this day, in this specific part of the school building.

So, least to say, he was more than just a little bit surprised when he found the renowned Yamanaka Ino standing, smiling widely, radiating her usual charismatic enthusiasm, in the doorway. He eyed her up and down; judging from her outfit, she was fresh out of cheerleading practice.

Tearing his eyes lazily from what majority of the male population of Konoha High considered a "goddess", he returned to his game of shougi, and heaved a sigh. "Yamanaka Ino, huh. What're you doing here?"

"I'm going to be your tutor," she repeated as she stepped over the threshold, dropping her Gucci bag to the floor with a light _thump_, and neared him confidently. "And you are…?"

"Nara -," he moved a piece of shougi, not even bothering to heighten his gaze to meet her inquiring baby-blue orbs, "- Shikamaru."

She exhaled in what seemed to be relief, promptly sitting down unto the wooden chair opposite his. "Good, because then you really are the one I'm supposed to be tutoring." Her eyes refocused on him again, and tilting her head in curiosity, she continued asking, "What subjects are you failing?"

Shikamaru chose to ignore her question, and instead questioned, "Where's Sakura?"

She flinched slightly at the question, and also looked a bit disturbed; Ino was not used to people ignoring her – mostly, they gave her 100 percent of their attention – and even less having people asking where _Sakura_ was. Then remembering her position, she lightly responded, "She's got some… stuff to do. So, from now on, I'm going to be your new tutor!"

At these news, he gathered up his belongings, unceremoniously shoved them into his backpack, and proceeded to leave the classroom, only stopping briefly at the threshold to say, "Don't bother. I'm sure that you've more important businesses to attend to than tutoring someone."

* * *

"_What_?" the lead singer of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ snarled, narrowing his onyx eyes to mere slits in a frightening manner.

However, Sakura did not react; she had anticipated that this would happen. Instead, she forced her artificial smile to not fade as she bravely continued to keep eyecontact, although the mere effect that had on her was _powerful_; she couldn't feel her knees, and hoped desperately that they weren't shaking. Straightening them as much as she could, she tried to feign self-confidence.

"I've come to ask a favor of you, Sasuke-kun," she repeated, her voice only wavering the slightest as his glare intensified at the word 'favor'. "Concerning… Ino."

He made no move to respond; his gaze remained equally venomous as before, and his entire being seemed to radiate suspiciousness – but knowing his silence to be a gesture for her to continue, she proceeded; "Have you ever heard of _The Boyfriend Test_?"

"The Boyfriend _what_?" Sasuke snapped. He eyed the roseate-haired girl as though she was crazy – which, frankly, he didn't doubt that she was.

"_The Boyfriend Test_. It's a novel written by Jiraiya-sama – part of the former legendary _Sannin_, the 50's pop group in which Tsunade-sama also was member in – and it's mainly for teenage girls, so I'm not too surprised that you haven't read it. It's strange that you haven't heard of it, though – it has received well-written reviews, and it's even rumored that there's going to be a movie –"

"Get to the point," he interjected, his frown only deepening further. She suppressed a faint smile at the nostalgia of the face expression

(_Sasuke-kun, if you keep frowning like that, you'll develop early wrinkles! And then you'll look like an old man by the time you're twenty! And then no girls will like you – your fanclub will perish – and the female population of the entire world – and then you're only left with men, so then you've to return to being gay._

… _Sakura, if this is your pathetic attempt at an apology, I beg you to do the world a favor and shut up._)

but knew better than to be fooled. It wasn't like before – it'd _never _be like before.

Never again.

"Well, shortly put, it's a story about a girl and a boy, who're supposedly this perfect couple," she began, barely able to breathe as she faltered at his piercing stare, "or at least, everybody thinks they are. Actually, they lack passion – because while this girl seems totally crazy about this boy, he doesn't seem the way about her. So, her best friend tries to save the situation by teaching him how to be a good boyfriend."

"… And…?" he inquired further, irritated. Her response had not satisfied him; he still did not know the reason to why she asked a favor of him – or why she had even approached him, on _his _turf

(–_ although it had not been his turf for many years_ –)

to speak to him to begin with.

"And well, basically, that's what I'm asking of you, really. To teach you how to be…" She hesitated slightly, but did not dare to let it show in her cheerful demeanor, "… a good boyfriend to Ino."

"What," he breathed raggedly and heavily, seeming as though he was trying to regain his cool composure without losing his temper, "makes you think you've the right to tell me whether or not I'm a good boyfriend?"

"You can't fool me, Sasuke-kun," she replied quietly, "Ino tells me everything. And I know no matter how much you seem like Prince Charming to the rest of the world, you're nothing like it."

_And also, I know you too well to know that you aren't one,_ she mentally added, but not daring to voice her thoughts out loud, she chose to remain in silence.

"Forget it," the raven-haired teen snapped, and promptly pivoted on his heel, attempting to walk away. Sakura stared at his swiftly retreating back for a while; the broad shoulders, the dark hair, the black leather jacket – then, almost so softly that he could barely hear it – but making it loud enough to ensure that he did – she murmured:

"Do you know about Ino's parents?"

He stopped.

"I'm assuming that you haven't. They're florists, you know – in contrast to Ino, they've lived simple lives. They're high school sweethearts – started off hating each other, ended up married and with a kid."

"And?" Sasuke growled menacingly, still refusing to meet her gaze.

"I always thought they were a happy couple," she continued, trying to pretend not to notice the anger that, had it been a cartoon, almost seemed to emit from every pore of his body, like poisonous gas. She believed that if the anger had been visible, it would've been a deep shade of scarlet – one of his favorite colors, even if he didn't admit it. "They argued at times – after all, they're as lively as Ino – but I never imagined they'd be unhappy."

Silence followed during her brief pause to contemplate his reaction. Still facing his back, but standing stiffly as a statue on the path he was going to take home, she caught the unsaid answer – _continue._ "It wasn't before I was fifteen, I think, that I really noticed. I had always accused Ino of her fleeting romances, of her short-lived promises of eternal love – but then, I understood everything."

"Get to the point," he snarled again. Sasuke's onyx eyes scanned the area, irritation clearly visible in his orbs. The sun was setting in the horizon, and the air was damp after the rain – the people in this area often worked late and would come home after twilight, and if he was there any longer, thy'd see him. Hopefully, the rain that had been predicted to fall in the evening would mask his appearance, but he hadn't intended to catch a cold just because a certain pink-haired idiot was going to take forever during her storytelling-time.

"I caught Ino's father… with another woman," she exhaled at last, an exasperated face expression taking her previous stony, blank one.

The raven-haired boy froze. He had seen the dark-blonde man a couple of times when he had come to Ino's house; he had been polite and well-behaved – at least more well-behaved than Sasuke had expected – and he seemed like a rather loving father and husband. He couldn't imagine him with a woman other than Ino's mother, who looked like an older copy of her daughter – certainly he wouldn't…?

"I know, I was surprised too," Sakura cut him off in his internal monologue, as though she responded the thoughts he hadn't voiced out loud. "It was awkward after that. At first I didn't tell Ino, but then she told me herself – she knew it as well as I, and her mother too. After that, things became worse. Ino almost lost faith in love completely. I know it sounds melodramatic and kind of cliché, but, please… don't do this to her. You're…"

The pink-haired girl felt her voice falter slightly, and desperately trying to regain her cool, she looked away at the thin, purple clouds decorating the blazing sky, and tried in vain to swallow the endlessly thick lump that was situated in her throat; it was making it hard to breathe.

"You're her Prince Charming. Her first… her first love. You're her only hope left. Please, if you won't do it for me… do it for _her_."

* * *

"How much did you receive on your test?" Hiashi barked suddenly, making the dark-haired Hyuuga heiress jump slightly. She promptly dropped her chopsticks on the table, earning an accusing stare from her father as she bashfully lowered her gaze.

"U-um… n-ninety-five…," she responded, her voice barely audible even in the uncomfortable silence.

"Ninety-five?" Hiashi frowned at this answer, then at her shaking hand attempting to pick up her fallen chopsticks. "Don't drop them like that again, Hinata. That would be utterly embarrassing at an important dinner."

"Y-yes…"

"And Neji? What about you?" he continued to inquire, sipping his miso soup with utmost carefulness without even bothering to look at the aforementioned, who was seated at the end of the table. The former put down his chopsticks and bowed his head in preparation for the response.

"I received ninety-eight, Hiashi-sama."

"Ninety-eight?" The wrinkles on his suntanned forehead deepened considerably. "Do tell me, Hinata, what it is that constantly occupies your mind and distracts you from your studies. Is it perhaps _that boy_?"

The dangerous, almost mocking emphasis on the last words made her shudder slightly as her face reddened to the color of a beetroot; as she regarded what to answer with silence, he instead turned his piercing eyes – the ivory color belonging to all Hyuugas – to her cousin.

"Do inform me, Neji. It'd be an utmost failure if she had – of what I can recollect, you had strict orders keeping her away from _that boy_. It'd be a shame that the Branch family would lose face so easily after having acquired such a useful family member as you, Neji – your father always had high hopes for you."

The twisted compliment seemed to have an odd effect on the teenage boy – his knuckles instantly whitened because of how tightly he clenched his fists, but he kept his calm as he coolly responded, "Certainly not, Hiashi-sama. I've ensured that she stays away from Uzumaki."

The tension seemed to lighten, if only the slightest, as the head of the Hyuuga family gently pushed away the emptied miso soup bowl, gesturing at a nervous maid to collect it. "I'm glad to hear so. Then pray tell me, how come your studies are going so bad, Hinata? You're being defeated by a mere Branch family member. While Neji is – ah, _special _for his kind, you're bringing shame unto our part of the family, being the heiress and being of less worth than your five-year-old sister."

Hinata's face color only turned darker at this, and she looked slightly nauseous as she still refused to meet his gaze, instead staring down at the wooden table on which her half-eaten food was still placed in front of her. "H-hai… I… I've been tired lately, father. I… I apologize."

"Tired?" he repeated icily. "Is it perhaps a shortened sleeping routine that has slowed down the already painful pace of your studies? Perhaps you should not be allowed to leave the house in the evenings, then…"

"No…!" the dark-haired girl cried out in alarm, but quickly withdrew shamefully at her sudden outburst, at her impolite interjection of her mighty father, the influential politician and the owner of the famed Hyuuga Corp. "I… I'm sorry, father. It is merely… lack of sleep… because of… nightmares."

It was not entirely untruthful, she reminded herself as her father regarded her with an air of disgust. "Nightmares? How pathetic. To let such a minor obstacle stand in the way for your ambitions… I expected more of you, but I guess I was wrong."

Hinata cowered slightly under his loathing stare; she felt as though she had been stripped naked of her clothes, standing outside alone in the cool night, an icy breeze hugging her quivering body tightly; as though she was filthy on the inside, unable to wash it out; as though she was ugly, stupid, a disgrace – everything at once.

"I cannot deny I've thoughts of disowning you. Whilst it is a man's duty to be a loving father, I cannot accept such a disgrace as you as my daughter. It is, with deepest regret, that I say that there truly _is_ Hyuuga blood in your veins. I'd have, without a second thought, thrown you out, had you not received fame the moment you were born to this world."

She wished that he wouldn't speak – or that he'd at least stop looking at her with such hatred, with such disgust, not even disguised with the slightest trace of mercy, or that she'd just somehow magically become deaf… she'd have covered her ears, if she could have. But as it was, it'd only make the situation worse.

"I couldn't care less for you, as I don't see you as my offspring. But as you are to be the next heiress of Hyuuga Corporation, I've no choice but to teach you, despite despising you, despite wishing you were somebody else's child, so that somebody could take my place of being ashamed. In truth, I'd rather appoint Neji to protect your younger sister, Hanabi, as it'd be more likely she'd be targeted than _you_."

She didn't want to meet neither of the latter two's gazes; she knew they were looking at her, one in pity, the other devoid of emotion; but she was afraid that the tears she was suppressing behind her pale orbs would threaten to surface if she returned their stares.

"You're not even worth being targeted. As a daughter, you're absolutely useless. As an heiress, you don't even deserve the title. You're too simple, of too low caliber, to be a true Hyuuga –"

"Hinata-sama, there's somebody outside who wants to see you," a voice suddenly interrupted as a maid entered the dining room. "It is Inuzuka Kiba-san."

Awkward, heavy silence followed as Hinata unclenched her fists, hidden underneath the table, slowly, and arose to her feet. Her eyes shadowed by the dark fringe covering her entire forehead, she quietly mumbled, "Thanks for the meal", before she headed for the exit, followed by the maid.

* * *

"Hey! _Hey_! Shikamaru-kun… wait up!"

Ino wrapped the purple leather jacket tighter around herself as she followed the calmly striding Shikamaru into the cool autumn afternoon – or the beginning of the evening, whichever you'd prefer to refer it as. The sun had almost set completely; the sky was now a deep azure fading to a lighter baby-blue in the horizon, and in the utmost corners of the darkening sky, stars had started to come to life.

"Shikamaru-kun… Shikamaru-kun!"

She cursed her misfortune for not changing the cheerleading outfit before coming straight to the tutoring session; she had not expected that he wouldn't wait for her, having anticipated that she'd be able to convince him to wait for her while she changed in the girls' bathroom.

Keeping up with Shikamaru's pace didn't prove to be an effort; he walked rather slowly and carelessly, and Ino's stamina was not to be compared with – after all, it wasn't for nothing that she was the captain of the cheerleading squad. Carefully contemplating her options, she chose to strike up a conversation in hopes to convince him to let her tutor him.

"So, what do you and Sakura normally do during tutoring sessions?" she briskly questioned as she caught up with him.

No answer. Ino was starting to lose her precious temper – and although she was often called sweet and well-mannered, Ino secretly harbored a thin patience that quickly ran out when things didn't go her way. She seldom let her anger show in front of strangers, and even less in front of media or celebrities, but as it was, he was an unimportant student who obviously had no influence over higher-ranked people within the school, so she wasn't too scared to drop the façade.

"Shikamaru-kun?"

Countdown to the Eruption of Mount Ino… _10_…

"Nara Shikamaru-kun."

_9… 8… 7…_

"Nara Shikamaru."

_6… 5… 4…_

"Shikamaru!"

_3… 2… 1…_

"OI! PINEAPPLE HEAD!" she frustratingly yelled as she clenched her fists, stomping onto the ground in an angered manner.

At this, he swiveled around, revealing black orbs filled with boredom – although there was a tiny glint of amusement in them that quickly disappeared out of sight when their eyes locked unto each other. "Troublesome woman. Will you shut up if I let you tutor me?"

She smiled angelically, regaining her sugary façade once more as her baby-blue eyes shone with glee. "Maybe."

Heaving a deep sigh as he rubbed one side of his head in apparent disgruntlement, he muttered, "How troublesome…" But at least he was now glancing at her in an "interested, yet uninterested" kind of manner while she babbled on about her (non-existent) experience of being a tutor.

* * *

Kiba had never liked the suburbs of Konoha.

What made Konoha's suburbs different from normal suburbs was that these suburbs were like tiny villages; everybody knew each other, and in each suburb was a "leader" representing that suburb among the higher-ranked politicians of the city; while Kiba's family, the renowned dog-breeding Inuzuka, also lived in a suburb, the place in which Kiba had spent the majority of his childhood, he still preferred the city.

In his eyes, the city was big; there was a vast variety of items to choose from while shopping, everybody who was "somebody" hung out there, there were more people to know, more parties to attend, more things (girls) to see. And also, if you made a fool out of yourself, not everybody had to know.

In Kiba's case, they'd know anyway. Ever since he had joined _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, it was practically impossible to go anywhere without being recognized. Being a ladies' man, he had never seen it as a problem. Getting to know crazy fangirls had become one of his favorite pastimes, especially if they were blessed with big curves, a slim waist and a pretty face.

But he had never quite understood Naruto and Sasuke, who didn't exactly lack the money nor the freedom to move into the center of Konoha as he, but had remained in one of the (most) boring suburbs of Konoha, namely where the "Hokage Tower" was situated.

"Oi, Naruto! Open up!" he shouted as he contemplated all of this, banging loudly on the door of the two's apartment.

No answer. The brown-haired dog-boy ran a hand through his messy hair with an annoyed sigh, and glanced sideways at the windows. The light was off; but he highly doubted they were out somewhere. Sasuke, perhaps – with Ino, most probably. Or just out walking. But Naruto…

"Oi, Naruto! I know you're in there! Open up!"

_He can't be at Ichiraku_, Kiba thought as he considered the possibility. _I'd have seen him at the bus stop opposite mine; besides, I already checked that before I came here._

He glanced sideways at the emotionless Hyuuga heiress, worry obvious in his eyes as he analyzed her tightly clamped together lips, the way her eyes were lowered at the ground, hidden beneath her dark fringe; her tense, uneasy silence ever since they had greeted each other. Even then, Kiba had known something was wrong – the soft, innocent way she spoke in was gone, replaced by a forcedly polite manner, her teeth gritted together in a strange sense as though she was holding back the urge to scream or lose her temper.

It only meant one thing: Hyuuga Hiashi.

Personally, the man didn't have a grudge with Kiba; he knew well of Kiba's background and family, and while he didn't exactly approve of it, he didn't have anything against it either – therefore, Kiba also had the permission to enter and exit the Hyuuga grounds, demanding Hinata's immediate presence without having to ask _him _before he did.

But he knew only too well about Hinata's problems at home, without her voicing her thoughts or troubles out loud. He had once, a couple of years ago, encountered one of Hiashi's merciless rants about how useless Hinata was – she had refused to speak to him for weeks afterwards, but it had eventually faded away. She wasn't strong enough to ignore somebody for a longer period of time, or be mean in any sort of way, even if he knew she wanted to be, just so he could perhaps just forget that specific moment that had brought her such shame and pain.

Kiba was often called stupid or even "blonde" (somewhat of a pun because he was often called Naruto's "secret twin" because of their similar personalities), but he was a close observer in comparison to Naruto, whose attention span was close to non-existent.

That was exactly why he had also intended to search for Naruto in the first place, although he had at first sought to find Naruto for different reasons; to question Sakura's state of mind as of lately – but as of now, there were some more urgent things that needed to be taken care of.

Namely Hinata's happiness – which, in his opinion, was of great importance.

"Aw, man," he exhaled in a kind of melodramatic manner, "I swear, that idiot is probably lost again. You remember, don't you, Hinata? Our first concert, I mean."

He chuckled at the memory of the screaming blonde loudmouth, who had been mistaken for a crazy fan and had been thrown out from his own concert when he had gotten into a brawl with one of the on-stage workers, then not being able to come back in, he had instead gotten lost in the crowd, his cell-phone out of money.

But not even that memory spawned any reaction from the pale-skinned girl. Reaching out, his left hand cupped her chin as she looked up in surprise as he slowly rolled her face upwards so that she was facing him.

"Hinata? Are you okay?"

He knew that she wasn't, but at a loss of words, he hadn't thought of anything better.

"Aah? Uh – yes – yeah, Kiba-kun. D-don't worry about me. I… I'm fine." She hesitated for the fraction of a second as he dropped his hold of her chin, and she stared at Naruto's door with an undecipherable face expression. "N-Naruto-kun… he's probably at the peak of the Hokage Tower again."

"Aa." He diverted his gaze away from her and turned towards the direction of the aforementioned. "That idiot. We were supposed to meet to discuss the coming concert… and Sasuke hasn't come home yet, either. But if we go to look for Naruto, and Sasuke comes back, and none of us are here, he's gonna get pissed. He hates waiting for people, that hypocrite."

"I… I can stay here, Kiba-kun," Hinata offered. He averted his eyes back towards her, incredulously.

"Are you sure? I mean… it's getting dark, and it's getting unsafe here as of lately and –"

"Kiba-kun," she interjected, to his astonishment. "I can take care of myself."

Kiba stared at her in slight surprise; she normally let him finish before she spoke, but there was something bizarre this time; she was oddly determined, and there was definitely something that was reminiscent of strength of will as she looked up at him with milk-colored eyes.

And then, his lips quirked upwards into a handsome smirk. "I know. I believe you."

* * *

"It's not… I mean, it's only temporary," Sakura continued as she fidgeted somewhat uncomfortably, "It's just, you know, kind of like a… rehab session. No, wait, never mind – tutoring session. See it as tutoring, or just… advice in general."

Speaking to Sasuke had always been like speaking to a wall, she concluded. However, it felt more like it than ever – the silence dripping with tension lingering in the air made it so awkward to speak that she felt like she was somehow running out of time.

"… I mean, uh, I'm not asking, you know, for you to _change _your entire personality," she blubbered on as her unsteady gaze darted about in the deserted neighborhood. "At least do it in front of the media. Or just… or just make her happy, okay? You know you can. Because right now, you'll have to admit, she isn't the happiest she can be. I know you can make her the happiest girl in the world."

_Because that was what you would have made me years ago, had I been in the same place as Ino is in right now back then,_ were the unspoken words haunting at the back of her mind. She quickly pushed the thought away, and anxiously anticipating an answer, she didn't even pause to let him contemplate his options.

"I know you're untrusting of me, and that you hate my guts, but seriously, I promise I'll be as little annoying as I can and not do anything weird like steal your phone number and give it to your crazy fangirls – although if I had wanted to do that, I could have long ago, since obviously Ino has your phone number, and I could always take it from her. But –"

"Thursday," Sasuke cut her off as she looked at him with widened jade eyes; he had turned his head momentarily, his face clearly radiating irritation, to look her way; his hands were in his pockets, and he was already starting to walk away, once again looking straight forward. "5 p.m., Classroom 7. Don't be late."

Sakura could only (mentally) gape in awe as he swiftly pivoted around a corner and disappeared out of sight. She couldn't believe it. A strange, bubbly feeling arose to her chest; it was something akin to a mixture of odd happiness, relief and a twisted sort of nervousness. With a well-hidden smile that she didn't quite let unto her lips, she happily walked the opposite way back to the bus stop.

* * *

"I _knew _you'd be up here!"

The blonde flinched as he abruptly turned around where he sat, but instantly relaxed at the sight of the broadly grinning dog-boy. His elbows resting on his L-bent knees, he had cupped his chin in the palm of his left hand. The other arm hung somewhat lifelessly from where it was steadied by the knee.

"Kiba," he simply uttered, acknowledging the other teen's presence.

"Yo." The latter seated himself next to Naruto, following his gaze to the now clearly glimmering stars ahead of them. "It's Sakura, isn't it?"

He didn't need to ask again. Naruto's hands immediately balled to tightly clenching fists, and he made a disgruntled sound that sounded like something between a grunt and a snort as he leaned back, throwing his head upwards so that he could stargaze even better with a better view of the dark night sky.

"Aa," he muttered in response, voice barely audible, even in the harmonic silence.

"I figured as much." Sighing, he leaned back so that he lay on his back, his hands supporting the back of his head/neck as he stretched back with a half-yawn. "What do you like so much about this place, anyway?"

Naruto hesitated – for only a minimum part of a second, but Kiba noticed it anyway. Then he turned away in obvious disapproval of the apparently taboo question. "It's… beautiful. And also, you have a view of the entire Konoha, but nobody down there can see you."

Kiba didn't answer at first. Then, he calmly, and almost with careful carelessness, he remarked, "Hey, do you remember a time when you said you wanted to be 'Hokage'?"

The shorter loudmouth scowled as he murmured, "That was before _everything_."

"Yeah. That's right. Back when your pops was still the Hokage – and Sasuke still lived with you guys. And nobody believed you were ever going to make it as a Hokage."

Still no answer. Naruto only stared straight forward with a far-off gaze, for once more silent and serious. Kiba took the opportunity to continue speaking. "You know, they're talking about renaming the position of the leader in Konoha – by calling it "mayor" or "leader", or something like that. They say that 'Hokage' is outdated, that it has been used for centuries and that now is a time for rebellion and new stuff or something…"

"New stuff, huh…," the blonde murmured quietly. "What're you doing here, anyway?"

Sighing with a shrug that indicated defeat, Kiba replied, "I _knew _you'd forget. We were supposed to meet to talk about the concert, remember? It's in two months. We need to get started on some new songs – people will get tired of hearing the same old shit several times and then we're going to lose the fans and, dude, I don't know about you, what with you having a chick and all, but I'm not in the mood of losing our crazy fangirls just yet."

"Aa. Right."

"Dude, what's with you? I think you're too much with Sasuke for your own good. His emo-ness is rubbing off on you. I swear, it's not gonna take you too long before you start saying 'hn'."

Naruto lowered his head to the point that Kiba couldn't see his face because of the blonde bangs getting in the way; the previous seemed to be deep in thought as he obviously contemplated an important matter, while the latter tried to think of something to say. Asking what it was would be no help, he concluded; Naruto would just brush it off. But then, judging by his strange mood, there always was a _slight _chance he was going to tell –

However, before Kiba could further interrogate his friend, a vibrating cell-phone in his pocket urged him to pick it up.

_New Text Message From: Sasuke_

_The Hyuuga girl told me you're at the Hokage Tower. Get your ass back here in five minutes and bring the dobe with you._

"Oi, Naruto," he spoke up as he placed the phone back into one of the pockets of his black, baggy pants, "Sasuke tells us to get back to your place so we can get together to discuss the concert. Neji can't come with us, though – you know, his usual martial arts training with Hinata's dad."

"Oh, yeah," Naruto responded absent-mindedly, without looking up.

Kiba stared at him for a couple of seconds, before shrugging with a sneer, "Dude, forget what I said before – you _are _Sasuke II. You damn emo."

"Who are you calling an emo, huh?!" The blonde jumped up with a sudden enthusiasm. "You want me to KICK YOUR ASS, punk!?"

"I'd like to see you try, you loser!"

"Hey! Who you callin' a loser, loser?!"

* * *

It was after much nagging, two close-to-tantrums and one frustrated shriek that Ino managed to find out the truth behind Shikamaru's and Sakura's tutoring sessions; Shikamaru failed practically every subject except Crafts, Home Ed. and P.E – but as he obviously didn't need tutoring (she failed to find out the reason), they spent their tutoring sessions playing shougi or watching clouds, often while eating anything edible supplied by Shikamaru's friend, Chouji (which she was slightly ashamed to admit, had no clue who it was when she often bragged that she knew the entire school).

As it now was, Shikamaru was seemingly aimlessly wandering the streets of Konoha in search of – well, something. Ino, who was still exhausted from doing research on why he was being tutored in the first place when he obviously didn't want to and why Sakura, who hated wasting her time, still insisted on tutoring him, gave up trying to find out exactly what they were looking for.

_This guy certainly knows how to get on my nerves_, was the irritated thought that crossed her mind as she kept up with him with ease; she didn't quite know if his slow pace was due to his apparent laziness, or because he really had nothing against her company – _either way doesn't matter_, Ino concluded as she finally regained the stamina to pose her question.

"Hey, Shikamaru," she uttered tiredly – she had dropped the polite suffixes long ago, although Ino's definition of _long_ did only consist of a couple of hours – as she came to a halt abruptly. "Where're we going?"

Shikamaru only turned his head slightly, angling it enough to see her. "Someplace."

"What do you mean, '_someplace_'? Is it far from here?" she demanded to know, vexed.

"If you're tired, go home," he merely answered with a careless shrug. "It's none of your business, anyway."

"I'm going to tutor you the way Sakura does, if it's the last thing I do," Ino responded through gritted teeth, "so just show me the frickin' way already."

"How troublesome."

* * *

"You're late, dead-last," Sasuke replied, obviously infuriated as he caught sight of the swiftly approaching bickering loudmouths.

"Shut up, you human ice cube, so are you."

"Hn," he grunted in response. He was least to say in a bad mood after the unexpected encounter during his usual walk to the house that no longer was his home; coming back to what was now considered his new _home_, he hadn't been surprised to see the Hyuuga heiress – it had relieved him that she had merely greeted him and remained in silence; it had at least given him space to rewind and analyze what had just happened, which certainly wasn't going to happen now with Kiba and Naruto around.

In some strange way, he felt oddly relieved because of that. Thinking too much not only supplied him with a great deal of headache – not that he could escape the aforementioned when his company included Kiba and Naruto – but it also made plenty of unwanted feelings, such as confusion and angst and hatred

(_yes, especially the hatred, the hatred he had so obediently and carefully kept within, the hatred that he harbored against _that_ man_)

and sadness and anger and regret

(_although he wished he never felt it, that he could contain his pride with such strength that the feeling wouldn't cross his path and destroy the shield he had built, but then her eyes would flash past, those eyes filled with hurt and sorrow, but then again, what did she know about hurt and sorrow?_)

and longing and pain and _weakness _and –

"… ke. Oi! Listen to me when I'm talking, bastard! Earth to alien-Sasuke!"

Snapping back to reality, the Uchiha cursed his misfortune for spacing out and thinking too much _again_. "You're not worth listening to, idiot."

"… Bastard…!"

"Hey, hey, calm it," Kiba intervened hurriedly as he stepped between the two determinedly. "Don't go berserk on each other – I don't wanna pay for any destroyed stuff again. I'm not _that _rich, you know. And seriously, Sasuke, even if this idiot isn't worth listening to –"

"Hey!"

" – we're still talking about important stuff. The concert and all. You really _should _listen, even if it's a pain in the ass to listen to _him_."

"Exactly! – Wait, what?... YOU DAMN DOG-FACE, YOU'RE GOING TO DOOOOWN – WHAT THE FUCK, BASTARD, LET GO OF MY EAR!"

"If you shut up," the latter snapped in response. He mentally reminded himself to slip into the apartment and take a headache pill later; although something else swiftly occupied his mind as he registered what Kiba had just said. "And what about the concert, anyway?"

"Well, our manager just told me some news," Kiba informed the group with an almost bored voice as he watched Sasuke let go of Naruto's now blazingly red ear as the aforementioned glared at the Uchiha in anger as he rubbed his sore ear. "He wants us to write love songs."

"What?" Sasuke spat, angered.

"Dude," the dog-boy answered, alarmed as he wiped his face with the sleeve of his black jacket, "I get that you're upset, but you don't have to spray me with your saliva, you know."

"What is wrong with the songs we have?" he continued, ignoring Kiba's statement.

"He said something about chicks and increasing our audience, yadda yadda. You know, broaden our horizons and whatnot, that Sound is catching up with us, blah blah."

"Bullshit. When I was in Sound, they barely knew how to play chords right."

"Well, that was a couple of years ago, wasn't it? You don't know a shit about Sound anymore, they can change as much as you can. If you've changed at all, that is," Kiba answered, deadly calm. An intense silence followed as the two male adolescents stared at each other, the first one with narrowed coal eyes in displeasure, the other with a blank gaze, only showing the slightest trace of iciness. The other two, that were left out of the discussion, merely watched this unfold.

However, it lifted as the latter continued as though the silence had never occurred, "Anyway, what're you guys going to do about the party next week?"

"What party?" Sasuke wanted to know, somewhat defensively, as the question had been a direct attack to his, as Naruto sometimes referred to it as, full-blown ego; the aftermath of the previous silence.

"The party of the royal Sand siblings," Hinata piped up suddenly, making the boys jump slightly at her sudden statement; they had completely forgotten that she was there. "The young Kazekage, his older brother and older sister are coming to Konoha – they'll hold the party at the villa father gave them as a gift for Kazekage-sama when he was proclaimed as such."

"Right… I keep forgetting Gaara is royalty," Naruto retorted, scratching his head thoughtfully. "The guy doesn't seem like a prince, if you ask me. I mean, seriously? The guy doesn't have eyebrows."

"Yes, because _that_'s what doesn't make him a prince," Kiba commented dryly, rolling his eyes. "I can't believe they're still 'royalty', though. Technically, they can't even be royalty, because Sand stopped being a country during the 17th century, or whatever. Right, Hinata?"

The dark-haired girl nodded solemnly, still not quite lively after what had happened previously. "But it's still a tradition to call them royalty, although their ancestors were robbed from the title long ago. Also, what with Kazekage-sama also being Kazekage, the title is strengthened, if only for a bit."

"I can't believe that Gaara is Kazekage, though. He's the same age as us – it's so unfair, if you ask me. I mean, while we're stuck in school doing maths, he can just chill all day in his office, watching TV shows, and nobody would even notice as long as he shuts off the TV as soon as someone comes into the room. I've seen Granny Tsunade do it several times."

"Yeah, life must be easy for him. But I bet he has his duties, too, you know – like attending boring meetings with old geezers, that kind of shit," said Kiba. "Besides, he probably has no time for girls, even if they're drooling all over him."

"Right!" Naruto suddenly exclaimed, startling the rest of the group, "I was supposed to call Sakura-chan! Ah, wait for me just a bit before we go to Ichiraku, won't ya?"

As he pulled out his cell-phone, hurriedly dialing her number while Kiba teased him for being so forgetful and asking how he even managed to get a girl in the first place, neither except Hinata saw how Uchiha Sasuke's fist clenched tightly to the point it almost whitened at the mention of the girl's name.

* * *

_Sakura,_

_We're off to Tokyo this weekend. We'll probably be back by next. We're sorry that we'll be late again, but we trust you to take care of yourself and the house. There's food in the fridge, and if you run out of food, we've left you money for grocery shopping._

_-- Mom & Dad_

Haruno Sakura stared at the piece of paper – _the edges are getting crumpled,_ she noticed, _maybe I should be more careful?_ – as she stared at the familiar note for the umpteenth time. The text was already getting smudged, and a couple of stains – _tears_, was the uncomfortable thought that came to mind – could be seen here and there, despite her effort to wipe them off.

"You never come home, you bastards," she mumbled, a little bit for herself, a little bit for the ones she was speaking of that couldn't hear her; either way, it didn't matter. With or without them present, it was the same; life went on, just without the infrequent questions of how her studies were going, or how her volunteer work at the hospital was doing.

_It isn't like anything else exists in their world,_ she thought bitterly, but decided to shake it off as she stretched out her legs on the cold kitchen floor, surveying her surroundings with exhaustion, as though she had never seen the place before.

There was a wooden table in the center – she vaguely remembered that her father had crafted it himself – surrounded by four empty chairs made out of the same wood with crimson, soft seats; there was the good old fridge, almost as empty as the room; the stove, the sink and the kitchen counter – all in dire need of cleaning – and a platter of fruit on the floor that she remembered Ino forcing her to eat.

As she felt her stomach growl at the thought of food, she crawled like a baby – as though she was unable to walk – towards the fruit and promptly seated herself on her knees in front of it, staring at her options. Most of the fruit was already ruined, some even covered in mould; finally she found a fresh apple with barely any damage the same color as her eyes, got up and turned on the faucets, rolling the hard fruit between the palms of her hands slowly.

As she turned off the faucets, she could still hear them drip in the silence as she once again sat down onto the floor, taking a bite out of the sour, yet sweet, apple. The bittersweet flavor reminded her of something…

Closing her eyes in deep thought, a familiar face came to mind. An onyx-eyed, raven-haired boy – yes, _boy_, not the soon-to-be-man like he was now – who sulked while a roseate-haired girl poked him with a wide, bright smile. A blonde boy behind them, with whisker-like features, was screaming for attention until said roseate-haired girl punched him. She smiled, watching them play in her memories until a familiar cell phone signal awoke her to life.

_This is a retake of my life, I was his star for many nights  
But now the roles have changed, and you're the leading lady of his life…_

Her eyelids slowly fluttered open. The kitchen was enveloped in darkness, the only light supplied by the moonshine coming from outside. It had been nice, dwelling in the past, if only for just a second.

_Lights, camera, now you're on  
Just remember you've been warned  
Enjoy it now, 'cause it won't last_

She slowly reached for the cell-phone on the kitchen table. The sharp neon pink light emitting from the object lit up her face, making it look like the same color as her hair; she registered the name in a daze – _Naruto _– and once again the blonde boy's smiling face came to mind… only to be replaced by bitterness, sadness, disappointment, all negative emotions so vivid in his face, distorting his handsome features…

_Same script, different cast…_

Shaking her head abruptly, she flipped open the cell-phone, readying the fake smile mentally before it surfaced on her lips.

"Geez, Naruto, that only took you a couple of hundred years! You shouldn't make a girl wait for you! That's rude, you know?... That's not an excuse! You know Tsunade-sama never makes me work late at the hospital on Saturdays! Baka!"

* * *

Similarly to how deserted her pink-haired best friend was feeling the very same moment, Yamanaka Ino was feeling strangely alone in the huge, darkened building in which she was currently walking about. She could only thank God Shikamaru was with her – although without him, she wouldn't have gone there in the first place.

"What _is _this place?" she questioned as she wrinkled her petite nose; the damp smell of something rotting inside these walls made her uncomfortable – the entire place did. The old paper factory situated in the outskirts of Konoha

(_she couldn't even _believe_ that she had walked this far from the school; even with her stamina, it was tiring_)

had been deserted for years, as the owner had gone bankrupt; it had been the victim of anonymous graffiti painters ever since, but nobody had ever thought of going _inside_. Ino shivered as she pulled her jacket closer around herself. She could understand why.

"What're we doing here?" she repeated as Shikamaru refused to answer her question.

The latter scanned the area, somewhat more alert than previously, and he shoved his hands into the pockets of his dark jeans as he softly called out, "You can come out now."

"Nara," a low, baritone voice hissed into the darkness, making Ino jump slightly; two hidden silhouettes stepped out from the shadows, one dragging his both arms lazily on each side of his more crouching body, the other standing straight up with a cocky sneer on his face. "What a pleasant surprise. You should've told us you were going to come earlier, then Kin wouldn't have gone out."

"We're better off without her, anyway," the second one – the cocky one, as Ino mentally referred to him as – said as his face was distorted into an ugly grimace, running his calloused fingers through his messy black hair, "She's disgustingly _sweet_ whenever he's around. Gives me the creeps."

"I figured you'd be here," Shikamaru instead replied, ignoring their comments about whoever Kin was – Ino decided that she was _definitely _going to ask him about all this later – crossing his arms defiantly. "How much longer are you going to stay?"

"Three days, at most," the first one growled darkly, "It isn't the safest place to practice, and with Zaku around, it'll be a difficulty to remain hidden."

"Hey, your drums are loud too," the guy named Zaku argued with a frown, "Don't put all the blame on me, Dosu."

Dosu merely waved off his complaints as he suddenly turned towards Ino; she felt her breath hitched in her throat as she unsurely stepped backwards. "What's with the chick, Nara?"

"Never mind her," Shikamaru answered with an exasperated sigh. "Just tell me already."

"Who is she?" Zaku wanted to know, his smirk widening as he eyed her up and down – she felt slightly annoyed as his eyes rested a bit longer than they should have on the cleavage of her cheerleader uniform – moisturizing his lips with the tip of his tongue.

"Never mind, alright, she's just a…" He paused momentarily to rethink what he was going to say next, and finished briefly with, "…classmate."

"Does she know?" Dosu continued interrogating.

_Know what?_ Ino wanted to say, but unable to utter anything in the breathlessness of the anticipation, she merely watched their discussion in a way reminiscent of how you watch a tennis match. "Yes," he responded without a second thought. "Now tell me already."

"There's no need to be such in a hurry, Nara. We need to ask you some more about your little lady friend there – we've to eliminate any possible risk. After all, you're our only spy in Konoha."

* * *

Aaah, sorry for the many dialogues! But I promise, all these dialogues are of importance, so they're not just random shit to lengthen the chapters, they actually matter to the plot, so PAY ATTENTION!

On an entirely off-topic matter, I'd like to say that GOD, this fic is so hard to write. You know, when I was writing This Is Not My First Time, everything just came to me easily and I just wrote it down, and Fear of the Light (I'll have to think about continuing that fic due to Itachi's character change) had this complex plot, but once my Writer's Block lifted after some time, what was going to happen became clear as crystal. This fic on the other hand... God, the plot summary is taking me ages, and I'm not even done with HALF of the chapters! I know how it's going to end though, but it's all the stuff in-between... (sighs)

I'm sorry for the delay (it's been exactly a month!), but well, real life's busy. I can't promise any fast updates anytime soon - I'm almost out everyday now that the weather is so nice (although it's become chillier as of lately), and also, there're helluva lot of events during the end of 9th grade, what with junior high prom coming up and all. Then during the summer I'm going away on vacation, and the few weeks I'm at home, I'll most probably hang out with my friends. But there will probably be an update every month or so.

Thanks so much for the reviews, and keep on reviewing!


	4. o3: iris

**Disclaimer: I'm sorry to say that I don't own Naruto. Or else, I'd have known what'd have happened, and I'd have demanded IMMEDIATE SasuSaku. I also don't own the lyrics displayed in this song, which is Goo Goo Dolls' song "Iris".**

* * *

There're things you can't say right out loud.

(_And too many things that you unfortunately do despite this.)_

Like, the real answer to whether or not somebody's cooking tastes good when they ask you to try it,

(_and you still smile and say yes even if it tastes like, excuse me, but CRAP)_

or to whether or not someone looks fat in a dress,

(_and you still smile and say 'no' even if it really, REALLY emphasizes their tummy even if they technically AREN'T fat)_

or to whether or not someone looks pretty.

(_Like that dumbass asked _him _once. Well, not if he looked pretty - but if _I _did.)_

But then again, there're always people who breaks the rules.

(_"Sakura-chan is the prettiest girl in the world! She looks like an angel, even if she has pink hair and green eyes! But I still like it, because your hair is COOL, and your eyes are pretty. Don't you think Sakura-chan is the prettiest girl in the world, Sasuke-teme?")_

People who say things they shouldn't say,

(_"... No.")_

People who feel things they shouldn't feel. Or _don't_ feel things they _should_ feel.

(_"Teme, you made her cry! I'm going to KICK YOUR ASS!")_

But how come when you're really supposed to say things that don't hurt people,

(_"I'm sorry.")_

you can't? Is it because you know those simple words can't cut it, can't ease the pain they're feeling...

(_"Look at me. Sakura. Look at me.")_

... or is it simply because you're too afraid of saying it out loud?

(_"I'm sorry.")_

* * *

**o3.**

"You wanna fuck with me, huh, old geezer? You don't? Well, if you don't wanna, then get your sorry ass away from me before I kick it _real _hard so you can't fuck even if you wanted to!"

The hazel-eyed girl flicked her long, flowing chocolate-colored hair that reached all the way to just above her waist; looking briskly at the quivering servant, she inquired; "Oi, are you coming or not? I know my bag is heavy, but damn, I need all my equipment now that I'm back in Japan. Hyuuga-sama expects me to have developed."

"… Miss… that…," the servant choked as he eyed the ashen-faced, middle-aged man apologize in an unbelievable rushed manner before quickly disappearing out of sight, having earlier maintained a cocky façade, approaching the teenage girl with an arrogance that few possessed. "You…"

"Ah, don't worry about it," she hurriedly waved off his complaints, "He's not gonna die just because some girl told him off before he could feel her up her skirt. Hyuuga-senpai, you really haven't changed at all."

"Don't call me that, miss," the Hyuuga argued with a frown, "Hyuuga-sama would not be pleased. Even if I do bear the surname of the prideful clan, I'm not of the Main family, so I cannot use it however I please. Please call me Daisuke –"

"Hai, hai," the girl interjected tiredly, resuming her speedy walking. "After all these years, Hyuuga-senpai, I thought you'd learn. It's plain manners to call people by their surnames, even if you're my kind-of slave."

"_Slave_?" the man named Daisuke repeated incredulously.

"Oh, of course. Considering the way I've bossed you around since I was - what, five? – you've been like a slave. You just obey commands, you don't ever tell me off for being a bitch. That's bad, Hyuuga-senpai. Soon enough you'll have to start singing '_I'm a Slave 4 U_' – that Britney song, y'know – unless you start acting more respectable so that you can raise me."

"Since when did I receive the responsibility to _raise _you?!" he demanded, infuriated, apparently forgetting all about the polite suffixes and the not-so-plain language and choice of words.

"Since my family died and I was taken in by the Hyuugas," she responded as cheerfully as ever, a broad smile forming herself on her face as apparent nostalgia struck her. "Man, I haven't seen them for ages. I wonder how Hinata-chan looks like now… she has probably become the beauty queen of the school, what with her porcelain skin and pretty eyes and absolutely gorgeous hair. And she's a great makeup artist, too… but I wonder…"

She exhaled in obvious satisfaction as a glimmer of curiosity and mischief entered her deep brown eyes.

"… what Neji will say when he sees me…?"

* * *

"You're unexpectedly quiet."

The remark had caught her by surprise. Her hand frozen in mid-air, the French fry dangling somewhat loosely between her thumb and index finger, she looked at him with incredulity. She parted her lips to 

respond, but the answer disappeared from her mind before she could voice it, and she withdrew, putting her hand to her mouth, not knowing that she had dropped the French fry long ago.

Shikamaru only watched her, absorbing the last mouthfuls of his soda, face devoid of emotion. "Say it," he merely remarked as he promptly put the empty can onto the oily, dirtied surface of the table.

"I – how – you…," she choked, her voice cracking; he pushed her own, unopened can of Diet Coke towards her. Ino just shook her head so that her blonde hair, now pulled into a horsetail, whipped her face gently. "Why?"

"Orders," he answered. "I' m a double-spy. I naturally work for Konoha – or else I wouldn't have revealed it to you. Tsunade-sama personally asked me to make reports frequently regarding the Oto case; it's really troublesome, so I normally don't do this stuff, but I actually have a debt to pay. So…" He shrugged carelessly, heaving a sigh as he leaned back in his bright red chair, scanning the almost emptied fast food restaurant. "… I'm doing it as a favor, not because I want to."

"But… why? Otokagure and Konoha are in peace now, aren't they? Why would…?"

"On paper, yes. While it's kind of safe to assume that we most likely won't have any real, violent wars, there're other things – among them the rivalry between The Sound and The Academy, the two top schools of the cities. Orochimaru may be a successful businessman, but it isn't merely because of his skill. Dirty tricks and having gangs do undercover jobs as well as provoked scandals to give Konoha a bad reputation and regain Otokagure's has put him in the position he is now. And his goal, or at least what we assume is his goal, is to close down The Academy and having one of his close lackeys taking Tsunade's place, pulling the strings so that somehow, he is the leader of both cities."

"Orochimaru…," Ino repeated in a mere murmur, thoughtfully. "That's one of the three legendary _Sannin_… but then he used to be Tsunade-sama's colleague?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru responded, tapping his fingers on the soda can's smooth, cold surface. "It's rumored that some conflicts appeared when they were still a pop group, or something like that. Since then, they've distanced themselves from each other, and then he founded The Sound, kind of like a response to when Tsunade-sama became The Academy's principal. About the same time she became Hokage, the previous Otokage was part of several scandals and was finally replaced by Orochimaru – I think it's safe to say that he pulled a couple of strings there to make it happen."

"Then why would they trust you? The – the guys we just met, I mean," she questioned in confusion. "I mean, you're from Konoha."

"Yeah, but they did their research well. According to the profile they managed to put together judging from my behavior and from their other spy in Konoha, they found out I was a lazy person who dislikes trouble. I pretended I was aware of the fact that Orochimaru would try to take over and I acted like I thought he really would, and that I'd help them so that he'd become the leader faster. They trusted me, as they didn't know Tsunade had sent me to tell them that lie. She had suspected ever since Sandaime's retirement that Orochimaru had already placed spies in Konoha, and she wanted to do the same."

"… So, basically…" Ino seemed to try to gather her thoughts, adapting a face expression of utter confusion. "But wait, don't they recognize _me_? I mean, I'm Sasuke's girlfriend. And – and – Sasuke used to attend The Sound, so doesn't that mean he used to be Orochimaru's _lackey_, or something?"

"Well, obviously they don't," Shikamaru exhaled as he tore his gaze away from her – _undoubtedly pretty_, he inwardly admitted – face and stared at the not-too-excellent view of the almost-deserted neighborhood outside. "Zaku has never been of the brightest kind, but I'm surprised Dosu doesn't know. Either way, I couldn't have kept them waiting and obviously I couldn't shake you off. But then again, Dosu is never informed of vital information as he isn't that important, and he isn't interested in gossip magazines, so it doesn't surprise me that he doesn't know. We're lucky Kin wasn't there."

"Kin?" she repeated. "Is that a… third one?" Shikamaru felt the tension that had filled him upon being interrogated concerning Sasuke's case lift when she obviously had forgotten her previous question.

"Yes, Orochimaru's lackeys mostly move in groups of three when they're sent somewhere. The amount of spies from Otokagure here is considered to be three, I think. The group that sends information back to him regarding the 'Konoha Spy Case' as it's called is Zaku and Dosu, the two you met before, and Kin, a girl who's their companion."

"But won't I get in trouble now when I know?"

"Hopefully not. Considering how you're so stubborn about tutoring me, it's only efficient that you know since I can take you along on missions."

"You haven't even _asked _me yet," she protested defiantly, crossing her arms in an almost childish manner. A somewhat self-conscious sneer spread itself on his face, causing her to sourly demand, "What?"

"You were the one nagging about tutoring me, telling me to do whatever me and Sakura do during tutoring sessions."

"_This _is what she does two to three times a week?"

"Yes."

"Dear God," Ino mumbled as she twirled a curl of blonde hair around her finger. "And _she_ complains about what _I_ do during my spare time."

* * *

"Aaaand score! As expected from the extraordinary, talented, amazing, absolutely _fabulous_ child prodigy – yes, the name we've all been waiting for, _Hyuuga Neji_! There're only three minutes left, folks! The tension is thickening!"

" – _Let's go stomp them, kick them, taunt them! Let's go all out like never before! Let's kick their asses, let's score! Go, go, go – GO KONOHA!_"

The identical cheerleaders all did a backflip right on cue backwards before jumping high up in the air, their minimal skirts almost riding up at the artificial wind created by their smooth, speedy movements. Naruto tried to cut out the high-pitched, almost-too-enthusiastic chanting of the cheerleaders and their eager screams, knowing all too well that the chants weren't meant for his ears. Maybe some of them were, but very few in comparison to the rest.

"Oi! Uzumaki!"

A monochrome-colored ball soared into the air and he quickly ran towards the spot on which it would land. Nodding his head upwards so that it'd hit it and then catching it in an almost professional manner on his foot, balancing it perfectly before finally putting it down on the ground with the foot resting on top of it, he eyed his opponent.

Raven hair. Pitch-black eyes. Ebony skin that seemed to belong to a person who hadn't been outdoors in a very long time. It was the face of his ultimate rival and best friend, Uchiha Sasuke.

"Dobe," the previous snarled, narrowing his eyes. "Focus. I know you admire my pretty face, but I don't want to date you, so there's no need to stare at me anyway."

He snorted incredulously in disgust. "Yeah, like I'd date _you_! I really have no idea why Ino would choose _you_ over _me_, but I bet it's just because I didn't chase her like some lovesick dog like you did."

Sasuke's frown deepened and his lips parted from each other to speak, but another voice cut him off before he could even begin. "Hey! Uzumaki! Uchiha! Focus on the game!"

An almost deafening silence descended upon the people in the gym. Sasuke's eyebrow was travelling further upward towards the lower edge of his forehead, and Naruto was only grinning in an utmost infuriating manner. Every member of both teams stood still, barely daring to breathe; it was almost like somebody had hit the pause button on a video, magically turning everyone into stone statues.

Sasuke's voice was low, the kind of dangerous low voice that Naruto knew girls died for, the voice he couldn't manage to summon himself, when his eyebrow started traveling downwards again and he mirrored Naruto's smirk, "And just so you know –"

Then the sharp, ear-splitting sound of a whistle could be heard, and the cheerleaders started screaming and chanting again. Someone had pressed the play button again.

" – I never chased her."

They started running. Naruto, who was gently kicking the ball forth while he dodged fellow members from Sasuke's team while Sasuke was the only one who perfectly kept up with his speed.

"Unlike you, Naruto –"

Sasuke suddenly disappeared out of sight; Naruto looked on the other side of himself and noticed that the ball was suddenly gone from in front of his foot and that Sasuke was in possession of it.

" – I don't shamelessly _chase _girls like _lovesick dogs_ until they give up and start a meaningless relationship with you."

The grin from Naruto's face had vanished swiftly, as Sasuke increased his speed and the volume of his voice just loud enough for his best friend to hear as he kicked the ball with a force stronger than needed -

"I'm just not that kind of loser."

- and although Rock Lee, who was the team captain of Konoha Soccer Team and one of the best at P.E in their grade, threw himself towards the direction of the ball, it was too late. It had already flown right into the net behind him.

"And _SCOOOORE_! Uchiha Sasuke makes an excellent and final goal, resulting in 3-2 for his team, with just twenty seconds left to spare! Marvelous! Simply marvelous! Then again, _what _can we expect from – as dubbed by his fans – _Prince Sasuke_?!"

* * *

_I don't want the world to see me_

* * *

Hyuuga Hinata was currently hiding out inside a toilet stall in the girls' bathroom.

For a lot of people, it was difficult to comprehend. It was understandable that they didn't – after all, she was famous for her life in luxury and for having one of the richest dads in the country, and was a well-known 'heiress'. Much to her agony, she was often compared to Paris Hilton and was often believed to live the glamorous life of a party-girl.

Contrary to popular belief, anyone who had been in a 2-meter-radius of Hinata knew all too well that she was a shy, soft-spoken girl who already had trouble talking with people (especially a _certain_ person) without stuttering, let alone party.

As a matter of fact, although Hinata had been enrolled into a so-called 'snob' school, the other preps wouldn't accept her even though she was rich _because _she was _too_ wealthy, _too _weird and _too_ much with _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ to be acceptable. Even the Neji fangirls knew better than to _not_ suck up to her, because if they did, they'd become just as outcast as she was.

That's why Hinata decided not to bother her friends during lunchtime and hide out in a toilet during lunch break and eat the lunch box the head chef of the Hyuuga compound made for her every day. She told the others that she went home to eat so that they'd suspect nothing. Only Neji knew the truth.

And that's why Hinata was currently sitting on the toilet seat's lid, munching on her lunch slowly while trying to digest what had happened lately.

Or to be more precise, digest the fact that Naruto had a girlfriend.

The piece of sushi she had swallowed almost seemed to lodge itself in her throat. Although she knew it was only a feeling because she could feel it pass, she still grasped the bottle of mineral water and drained a couple of mouthfuls to get rid of it. Needless to say, there was still something stuck in there after the water was gone.

_Maybe it's my heart_, she thought somewhat bitterly. _My chest feels hollow anyway._

_**Oh, for crying out loud, Hinata! Stop being all emo and win over your precious Naruto-kun already,**_ she could feel the part of her that wasn't angelic cry out in protest.

But she knew it couldn't happen. Year after year the same procedure had repeated itself, and not once, not before he got a girlfriend, not during their dating, not after they broke up, not when he was over her –

"Hinata?"

She cursed herself when she looked up swiftly, eyeing a pair of too familiar baby-blue eyes that were filled with astonishment. She had forgotten to lock her toilet stall.

"What're you doing in here? You don't –" At this, she adapted an expression to show that she was minor disturbed, as though she had just found out that Hinata had an extra pair of eyes, "- you don't eat lunch in here _everyday, _do you?"

Hinata felt the block in her throat extinguish. As a matter of fact, all liquid in it had obviously disappeared as well, as it became as dry as it would've been had she not drunk anything all day. "N-no," she choked out at last, "of course I don't. M-my chauffeur isn't feeling too well, a-and, um… the cafeteria was full, so…"

"Geez, you didn't have to hide out in _here_. You could've just given me a call, you know," Ino flicked her hair nonchalantly as she glanced at the hoard of goggling cheerleaders behind her. The entire scene was disturbingly reminiscent of the opposing side's army finding a sole prisoner post-wartime in Hinata's mind.

"Hey, girls! Let's go to the lunch cafeteria! And we've a new guest at the table today –" At this, she grasped Hinata's arm and pulled her upwards so that she dropped her lunch box unceremoniously on the ground. " – Hyuuga Hinata, you all know who she is, so let's spare the introductions. Now, shall we?"

Hinata, whose face had turned the deep shade of crimson when coming face to face with the scornfully sneering or angrily glaring cheerleaders, suddenly had her arm linked with Ino's as she was being pulled in the direction of the cafeteria.

"Sorry about that lunch box," Ino apologized absent-mindedly and waved hello to a couple of by-passing seniors, "but hey, I'll just buy you a new one, right?

* * *

'_cause I don't think that they'd understand_

* * *

There were quite a few times when Naruto was dubbed 'childish', 'stubborn' and 'idiotic' for different reasons. Sometimes because of his extremely short attention span, sometimes because he constantly was one of the last people to understand. But most of the time, it was because of his constant rivalry with Sasuke.

Although Naruto _knew_ that Sasuke viewed him as his equivalent rival, sometimes even superior, his arrogant attitude often suggested otherwise. People who didn't know them too well often thought that it was a one-sided rivalry from Naruto's side that he'd never be able to win – simply because Sasuke excelled in every single field, be it soccer, academics, girls or looks.

Or popularity.

As every other high school, The Academy had its little cliques. They weren't too obvious during classes or even breaks, because sometimes clique members were shipped into different classes and were unable to hang out due to their different schedules; but during lunch break, they became all too visible.

Naruto eyed the light-colored wooden tables of The Academy's lunch cafeteria, stretching all the way from where he stood in the jet line to the end of the large room, where a beautiful painting of Konoha's forest was visible.

_Punks,_ he noted mentally as he passed their table, looking for his companions, _hiphoppers, exchange students, geeks, brainiacs, outcasts, druggies, rich kids, jocks, and –_

He had reached _it_. It was _the _table.

"Oh, it's _him_," he could hear _her _voice saying with utter disgust, as though she was talking to the filthiest pauper with the most nauseating face on earth. "What're you doing here, _Naruto_?"

"Hi, Ami," he greeted with his most contained voice as he scanned the table. It was the usual invasion of natural blondes, dark blondes, caramel blondes, dyed blondes, and just a few brunettes that had dared to sit there. His face brightened up a bit at the sight of the roseate-haired Sakura, although she was staring intently at her plate with what seemed to be no appetite at all, and – to his surprise – the Hyuuga heiress, whose face was a deep shade of crimson, and whose dark hair stuck out immensely among the cheerleaders.

Indeed. It was the feared lunch table of the cheerleaders, the divas, the madonnas, the wannabe-or-going-to-be-or-already-were celebrities. Whatever you prefer.

"You didn't answer my question," Ami Watanabe spat rudely, flicking her dark blonde hair – with deep purple roots quite visible at the roots – with annoyance. "_What are you doing here_?"

"I'm just looking for a table to sit by. Is that a crime?"

"Well, _duh_. If you're thinking you can sit _here_, you can get lost. If you wanna sit here, you better bring Sasuke-kun. Right, girls?"

"Yeah," one of the freshman blondes piped up enthusiastically.

"Uh-huh," another agreed with somewhat more hesitance, but obviously still doing her best to suck up to the second mightiest (dyed) blonde in The Academy.

"Yeah, whatever, Ami. Go do another blowjob, or whatever you do in your spare time that shuts you up," he rolled his eyes. The others gasped dramatically; how _could _he just insult _the _Ami Watanabe just like that?

"_What_," she pronounced with extreme emphasis, as her hazel eyes narrowed to mere slits, "_did you just say_?"

"I said: do another blowjob, or whatever you do in your spare time," he calmly repeated. He could literally see the smoke surfacing from Ami's large nostrils as she huffed in almost comically exaggerated anger at the remark. Ino gave him a '_don't-you-know-what-you-just-did-to-your-rep_' glance, shaking her head in incredulity at his behavior.

But Naruto didn't care. He had never cared, after all.

Because no matter what he did, no matter what he said, he was the nephew of the much hated Namikaze Kyuubi, the infamous mob boss of Jinchuuriki.

When he was younger, he hadn't understood. Why were they all avoiding him like he was the bearer of the deadly pest? No matter how outgoing he was, no matter how funny he was, no matter how much he tried to steal people's attention – people would always loathe him. His mother would tell him they were jealous of him, jealous of the only son of the famed fourth Hokage of the current era.

It was only later that he got to know the truth; that his uncle was the feared Kyuubi, the infamous murderer who had been imprisoned by his own half-brother, Namikaze Minato himself. Although Minato had received admiration for his deeds, it seemed like Naruto had received the hatred passed on by Kyuubi's victims and haters.

"You – you -," Ami sputtered, pointing at him with a shaking index finger, her eyeballs almost popping out of their sockets.

"What's the matter? At a loss of words?" he mocked, smirking coolly. At this point, Sakura had looked up, a glimmer of amusement in her emerald eyes, and he winked playfully at her, almost instantly receiving stifled moans from his fangirls at the table – who were immediately shushed by their friends or received strange glares; even if Naruto _was _Sasuke's best friend, what he had just done was _unforgivable_.

Yeah, _Prince_ Sasuke's best friend. Quite a flattering label. Prince Sasuke was so _generous_, befriending the ultimate outcast, saving him from unpopularity.

Oh, Prince Sasuke! How cool he was! How intelligent! How sporty! How _gorgeous_!

And Naruto? Oh, he was _just_ the guitarist of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_. Forget that he was one of the founders in the first place – of course Prince Sasuke would get all the fame. But he was at least known for his and Sasuke's rivalry as well – and no matter what the competition was, Sasuke would always win, no matter if it was rock, paper, scissors or soccer.

No matter if it was chess or trying to be the top student of the year.

No matter if it was popularity or _love_.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Ami shrieked in a manner similar to that of a banshee, suddenly regaining her speech, the cheerleaders watching the exchange of words eagerly like a tennis match. "YOU FUCKING LOSER, WHAT DO YOU KNOW? YOU DON'T EVEN _GET _BLOWJOBS! YOU JUST FOLLOW SASUKE AROUND LIKE SOME KIND OF PUPPY! AND –"

"You should probably think of your tone, Ami," Sakura cut her off quietly, gaining all the stares in the lunch cafeteria, which had silenced to watch the oncoming fight, "you're just going to embarrass yourself otherwise."

"_What_?" she hissed menacingly. Ino's eyes were as wide as saucers, and her somewhat carefree glance had now turned into an '_oh-no-you-didn't_' stare at her best friend, her mouth slightly open. "_What _did you just say, _Forehead Girl_?"

"C'mon, Naruto." Sakura arose, grabbing hold of her tray with the untouched food; her voice suggesting utter boredom and minor disgust, "I'm outta here."

"Sure thing, Sakura-chan," he grinned widely, the two of them proceeding to sit at the only emptied table in the far corner in the other side of the lunch cafeteria, whose buzz had started up again.

Only Hinata noticed that Naruto's half-open backpack slung lazily unto one of his shoulders had dropped a somewhat torn (despite the fact that it was undoubtedly new) notebook. As discreetly as possible, she excused herself from the now wildly discussing cheerleaders, and bent down to pick up the item on her way out of the lunch cafeteria.

* * *

_And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_

* * *

"Oi, dobe."

Sakura tensed at once at the source of the voice; without having to look up from the mini-carrots she was poking at with the tip of her fork, she already knew what was happening – the rest of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ were seating themselves around the table.

"Hey, bastard," Naruto greeted smoothly, "done putting on your makeup?"

"I don't wear makeup, shithead," Sasuke growled in response. Kiba rolled his eyes at the familiar exchange of words before devouring his gigantic hamburger in an animalistic manner, while Neji simply sipped his black coffee, face emotionless as usual.

"Oh, _right._ That's because you look like a girl anyway. Hey, Sakura-chan, when did Ino become a lesbian?" he joked.

"Ino is _not_ a lesbian and _I'm not a girl_. If you don't want me to kill you right now, you shut the fuck up."

Silence fell around the table; Kiba looked up slightly to watch the scene unfold, while Neji calmly advanced on his beef, cutting it into small pieces with his knife and fork. Sakura kept staring at her plate intensely.

"Cranky today, are we?" Naruto simply said, the cheery grin not wiped off his face as he slurped some ramen soup. "What's up, Emo Drama Queen?"

"I told you to stop call me that. I'm not coming to the afternoon practice today."

"Is it Ino?" Kiba suddenly voiced his thoughts, which was something new as his mouth was still filled with pieces of his hamburger, making the words muffled. "Man, you can't ditch us for your _chick_."

"I'm not ditching you for _my chick_," Sasuke spat, his eyes narrowed; "I'm ditching you for a meeting with frickin' _Kakashi._"

"Man, you got into detention? Wow, congrats, you're _finally_ being normal! Welcome to the real world, Sasuke!" Kiba laughed, slapping him on the back. Upon earning a murderous glare, he retreated, but still grinning widely.

"I did _not_ get into detention. We're discussing the possibilities of the Uchiha clan filing a lawsuit against me, trying to force me to get rid of my surname or get a new one due to the fact that I'm no longer part of the clan."

Sakura could feel his onyx eyes pierce into her, even if she didn't look at them; she knew that Naruto was looking away from both at the moment and slurped his ramen as audibly as he could to cover up the awkward silence, and she also knew that she needed to come up with an excuse as well.

But even when Sasuke abruptly left the table without even touching his meal, she could still not summon her voice, because the block in her throat was as thick as ever.

* * *

_Or the moment of truth in your lies_

* * *

_Okay. Calm down, Sakura. You know you can do this…_

A certain pink-head strolled down the corridors casually, kicking an abandoned can of Coke into a corner with her – for once – converse-clad foot.

_Okay. You're one of the top students of the year, even of the entire school. Tsunade-sama even let you volunteer work in her hospital as her _apprentice._ Now surely you can do something as silly as make up an excuse for your, uh, boyfriend._

"Uh…," was the intelligent remark that escaped her lips. She cursed herself. Why had she spoken up when she didn't even have something to say?

"Yeah?" Naruto responded with his usual cheery tone, looking at her with his bright azure eyes. "What's up, Sakura-chan?"

"Um…" _You can do it, Haruno Sakura! You have to do laundry! You have to buy groceries! You have to go shopping with Ino! _"Nothing."

"Oh. Okay."

Another heavy silence fell, before Naruto spoke up this time, surprising her, "You're really quiet these days, Sakura-chan."

He folded his arms behind his head in a kind of relaxed way, but Sakura knew it was only a façade; Naruto only did it when he felt nervous. She didn't respond, waiting for him to continue.

"You weren't like that before… well, you know, before the bastard and Ino started going out. But, when I think about it, you were kind of tense before that too, when the bastard had just come back."

Sakura made no attempt to reply. Just the thought of his return caused dozens of memories to return

(_Sakura, I know you used to be friends before – _sadness at the use of past tense.

- _but is it okay for you if I, you know, date him now? – _astonishment. Then,

_You don't have to ask me, Ino. He and I are history._)

and it hurt as though she had stuck a needle, or a thorn, or just any sharp object, in her heart

(_History._

_History._

_The word echoed painfully in her mind, even hours after she had voiced it. It was never going to be like before. Never again.)_

as though someone stabbed her, over and over.

(_And that someone was _her. _Bubblegum pink hair, shining emerald eyes.)_

Hello, sweet self-torture. When did I last see you? When I summoned my memories again last time, I suppose.

"Sakura-chan… do you still… like _him_?" Naruto's voice spoke slowly, as though if he talked faster, it'd hurt his throat.

And it probably would. Not his throat, maybe. But someplace else.

Sakura looked up into his azure eyes, and she knew. She knew he was hurting

(_I'm sorry, _her conscience was screaming, _I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry)_

hurting just the way she was,

(_get away from me before it's too late, before I tear your wings apart)_

hurting just like someone stabbed him,

(_'cause I'm not the angel that will catch you when you fall)_

and that someone was her as well.

(_I'm sorry I can't be your angel. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.)_

"Sakura-chan?"

His voice was thick. With tears, maybe. Or with anxiety. She couldn't tell.

"No," she responded cheerily, punching him playfully on the shoulder. "I don't know what you're talking about! Hey, listen, I'm sorry (_that I can't be your angel)_ be with you this afternoon, Ino-pig forced me to go shopping with her after cheerleading practice. Forgive me (_and get away, run from me, abandon me, before I hurt you more than I already have)_?"

And with those words, she stalked away, knowing that his baby-blue eyes were watching her back retreat, baby-blue eyes filled with hurt she had caused, baby-blue eyes that didn't believe the lie(s) she had just voiced. Neither one of them.

None of them knew that a certain dark-haired, milky-skinned heiress had been watching all of this unfold, tightly clutching a notebook with 'Uzumaki Naruto' sloppily written on it in her hands.

* * *

_You're the closest to heaven I'll ever be  
And I don't wanna go home right now_

* * *

"You're late."

It was a cold, accusing statement that needed no answers. He wasn't waiting for an apology. It'd just delay them further. Still, she spoke what she knew he hated to hear.

"I'm sorry."

Uchiha Sasuke elegantly swooped off the table he had been perched on in the deserted classroom and towered over her with a steadfast, chilly gaze that could've turned even the hottest springs to pure ice. She tried to swallow the lump that had resurfaced in her throat, but to no avail. Instead, she turned away from the depths of black in front of her, so that she wouldn't drown.

(_Drown like a bird without wings to the depths of the sea -)_

"Fancy that you'd pick this classroom for our first rendezvous," she remarked with a tiny, high-pitched laugh – she cursed her nervousness; it would only make him more annoyed, and so she knew.

"What about it?" he replied; and she noticed how, even after all those years, his voice would still offer her such a strange thrill, like her heart was spinning around and jumped right up to her throat, and how her stomach would feel light and heavy at the same time, as though there were butterflies flying about inside.

(_- and fly to the heights of the heavens, but there was no air left to breathe -)_

She hid the tiny, melancholy smile that was about to make her way to the lips. "Nothing. So, um… shall we?" Her jade eyes darted to the open doorway.

(_- 'cause he had taken it all. And again, she'd bleed so easily)_

No response. He promptly marched out of the door, and only glared irritably over his shoulder. "Are you coming or not?"

(_and all just by standing next to him. And she'd die, a little at a time, because _he _wasn't going to catch her either when she fell)_

And finally, it appeared. The smile that she had been hiding all along, the smile summoned due to the irony of it all.

_After all these years, he's talking to me again, despite swearing he never would._

"Yeah, I'm coming."

_But it isn't because of me._

(_Not anymore, at the very least.)_

_It's because of _her.

* * *

_When everything feels like the movies  
Yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive_

* * *

"So, um… so far, you guys have been out on dates before, right?"

"Once," he growled, his eyes narrowing further as he drove down the road towards the center of Konoha. It seemed like the more he was with her, the angrier he became.

_This is going to be difficult,_ Sakura concluded tiredly.

"Oh yeah, I remember now. It was that one time Ino dragged you out to watch that romantic movie, and you didn't like it. Right?"

"Aa."

"Um. Right. So, uh… first thing's first – you've got to start taking her out on dates from now on. Because you can't be a couple and, you know, _not_ go out. Um. So. Any, uh, suggestions of where you'd like to go?"

_Well done, Sakura. He's already hating your guts and you're trying to make it better by stuttering like some brain-dead cheerleader/Ami-clone/rabid fangirl._

"…"

_Yeah. _Definitely _well-done. He won't even talk to you now._

She averted her gaze away from his aristocratic features and tried to concentrate on the view of Konoha's well-known trees flashing past as they drove past the park. At least it made her heart beat a little bit slower, if only just a _little_ bit.

"Well, I take that as a no. Well, you can go to the movies like you have before – but I don't think you two like the same movies, Ino is more into chick flicks and stuff, and you… well, I don't know, I don't think you watch chick flicks at the very least. Except maybe _The Notebook_, because everyone has seen it and even Naruto cried and –"

_Great. You're ranting. Way to go, Sakura! Concentrate on the trees. Concentrate on the _frickin' _trees goddammit!_

"Uh, anyway. There's the park, you can have, like, romantic picnics or stuff. And carve your names into trees, if you'd like to. Or you can just go shopping, even though that might not be what you like to do, but you can go take a coffee at a nearby café or something afterwards. Or – um… or… or…"

_Trees, not pretty eyes. Trees, not pretty eyes. Trees, not pretty ass – no, I mean eyes. But the ass is pretty nice, too. But the eyes are prettier. I mean, TREES! TREES!_

"Yeah." _Trees not eyes trees not eyes trees not eyes trees not –_ "You can, like… watch the sunset at the harbor later, and then you can stargaze on the hills, you know, but if you don't want to go to and fro that much, you can just stay put at the harbor and –" _Trees not eyes trees not eyes trees not ass I mean eyes not ass eyes trees not – _"watch your ass…"

_Good job, Sakura. You're not only a cheerleading Ami-wannabe slash rabid fangirl, you're now a PERVERTED cheerleading Ami-wannabe slash rabid fangirl._

"… I mean, not literally, but uh, there're, like, rabid seagulls there. At the harbor, I mean. They kind of disturb the romantic mood. They're always noisy and sometimes they bite you – in the ass, that's what I meant – and that's not really… good."

Sakura trailed off, cheeks reddening. Luckily for her, Sasuke was staring straight forward and waiting for further instructions. When no such came, he finally looked at her with an arched eyebrow.

"You still haven't said what I'm supposed to do _tonight._"

The way he said _tonight_ sent shivers down her spine, but her gaze remained steady as she stared determinedly on the trees. "Oh, yeah. I forced you to ask Ino out tonight… um… most of the stores will probably be closed by then, but maybe you can, like, take a look at the night market. I know that most stands are illegal and kind of low-class, but it's kind of cozy with all the lights and the little stands selling pretty stuff and everything, and maybe you can share stick with candied lychees or something. And then you can go stargazing at the hills, because… there're seagulls at the harbor."

"Yeah, you mentioned," he commented dryly, although there was a hint of amusement in his voice, which made her relax.

"And then when you're at the stands, maybe you can buy her something. Try not to look so bored – girls hate that," she started informing, her voice as steady as her gaze when she finally dared to look at him (but by now, his eyes were back on the road). "And if she finds something cute, you should probably buy it. If it's a necklace, you should probably be the one to put on it, and just when you're about to leave the kind-of hug you get yourself into when you do that, you can whisper in her ear that it suits her. If it's just a bracelet, you don't need to do the whole whisper-in-ear thing… just put it on and tell her that it suits her… and…"

* * *

_When everything's made to be broken  
I just want you to know who I am_

* * *

"And then when you're leaving her off at her doorstep – kind of like what you're doing right now – you should kind of smile and thank her for the night, and like – hug her or kiss on the cheek or on the lips, whatever you feel like doing…"

"Like this?"

Emerald lost sight of onyx when he leaned closer and she could feel his warm breath caressing her earlobe as he half-whispered, "Thanks for the date." Her own breath was hitched in her throat as he withdrew, a smirk on his lips before it faded away as quickly as it had appeared, instead replaced with his usual blank one.

_At least it's an improvement; he doesn't look annoyed anymore,_ she mentally noted.

"Y-yeah… you don't have to w-whisper like that, but… it's good too. Um. Yeah. G-good. Thumbs up!"

"Hn," he simply responded, lazily scanning the neighborhood. "I'm off. Tomorrow, same place, same time. Don't be late."

He stepped into his car, not even glancing at her once. Closing the door behind him, he started the engine as he started to pull away, leaving her with his last words;

"I hate waiting."

As he disappeared out of sight, only then did Sakura allow herself to slowly sink into a sitting position on her doorstep, contemplating what had just happened. Her still shaking hand traveled to her earlobe absent-mindedly, and only one sentence flashed past in her mind, guilt blended into the unidentifiable mixture of feelings she kept inside.

_I'm sorry, Naruto. I really am. I can't catch you when I fall._

_I'm falling myself._

* * *

_I just want you to know who I am…_

* * *

Right, so here you go, guys! The chapter you've all been waiting for!

... Okay, I've to apologize for the lameness of the first lesson, but I PROMISE that it's going to get better. And hey, don't forget, as usual, DETAILS ARE IMPORTANT later on. There're some major hints here.

Also, the lessons won't be 'everyday'. Although almost every chapter will feature a lesson, the 'boyfriend lessons' won't be everyday time-wise. It's like, twice a week. The reason why the next lesson is 'tomorrow' will be revealed in next chapter.

Okay, technically I'm on vacation, so I should sunbathe and get tanned before I officially start senior high, and buy plenty of new clothes, and get to know new people. But, excuse me, it's like 50 degrees (Celsius) out there!! You can't go out without DYING! And my Chinese really, really sucks. I should improve it until next time, but right now, GOOD LUCK with getting friends when I even have problems asking for a perfume in a cosmetics store. And all my friends are still asleep since the time gap between Taiwan and Sweden is like, 6 hours, so it's only half past nine a.m. over there. So what's a girl to do but write fanfics on her vacation?

Waah! I was so excited about finally finishing this chapter, because it gave me a major headache, that I even forgot to thank you guys for the reviews!! I love reading them. So keep reviewing!


	5. o4: the prince charming

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, duh. Nor do I own the gowns that the girls wear in this chapter; I actually got inspiration from . All the gowns exist in real life - nor do I own the song, Fairy Tales, by Jojo.**

* * *

Every girl has wanted to be some sort of princess in some sort of fairy-tale.

(_Even if they vehemently deny even having the idea later on, especially tomboys like Tenten)_

But then again, who wouldn't? Dressed in some sort of pretty, frilly pink thing, sitting on a pretty, white horse with That Boy who's a pretty prince that's head over heels in love with you.

(_Of course, that is _after _they've rescued you from the firebreathing dragon that protects your castle, a.k.a. the stuffed dog plush that's about as big as you that you got for Christmas and that huge tree that you'd climb on)_

It's only after you've grown older that you realize that it'll never come true

(_like how the tree doesn't resemble a castle at all, or that the dog doesn't exactly look like a dragon)_

and you scorn your childish fantasies, throwing them away.

(_Even if deep, deep inside, that little princess in the make-believe princess dress is still waiting for That Boy, the prince to come riding on a long stick that's supposed to resemble a horse)_

But you wait, still, for That Boy to come.

(_Even though he'll most likely not have a stick stuck between his legs this time – or well, he will, just not _that _kind of stick.)_

But how do you know, how can you tell, when you finally meet one that you love

(_If he really is going to rescue you from the firebreathing dragon, if he will really search for you even if you leave glass slipper)_

if he loves you back, and if he really _is _That Boy

(_Or if he's the firebreathing dragon in disguise that you need to be rescued from)_

and if he is, will it really be your fairy-tale, or has he already found _his _princess and _his _fairy-tale?

* * *

**o4.**

Watanabe Ami officially decided that she needed a new diamond ring.

It wasn't like she had too many of them, she concluded. Only thirty-five, and fifteen given by man toys – excuse me, _boyfriends_ – during the summer.

_How pathetic. I had __**twenty-five**__ given to me __**last **__summer._

But of course Ami didn't keep any gifts she had received _a year ago. _Who did that but _paupers_? She glanced loathingly at her perfectly French-manicured nails, as though they were at fault. Just the thought of poor/average people made her plain _sick._ How could they use the same pieces of clothing or accessories over and _over_?

She curled a (dyed) blond bang around the tip of her index finger. It had been _that _easy to win The Academy over. Her family, being third place when it came to wealth and power, influenced plenty of other families of students in The Academy; if they didn't please her, their parents might lose their jobs. And also it was partly, as she believed strongly, due to her _extraordinary_ looks (although she secretly hated her purple hair).

Her chocolate eyes traveled around the room, until it stopped on one certain blonde. She was silently chatting with some fellow cheerleader joyfully, whilst her pink-haired companion sitting next to her was staring with utmost boredom out of the window at the rainy landscape outside.

_Yamanaka Ino._

She could feel her blood turn to ice and her (un)naturally curly hair curl itself further just at the mention of her name. _That good-for-nothing Barbie,_ she seethed, _she's just a stupid bimbo, what does she even know about wealth? Her parents are _florists_, for crying out loud. What does she know about _living_? She doesn't even live uptown. She's such a pathetic, poor, ugly, stupid –_

"Ami?" a cheerleader who looked disturbingly alike a failed copy of Yamanaka Ino, "Ino-senpai asked me to pass the message on to you; you're coming to the Sand siblings' party tonight, aren't you?"

Ami smiled sweetly – which in itself was pretty terrifying that alone – and then remarked with a voice sprinkled with sugar as she twittered, "Oh, of course I'm going to. Who isn't going to, except maybe _low-life nobodies_?" At this, she threw a meaningful glance Sakura's way.

The comment had escaped her lips out of pure habit, but she knew the cheerleader wouldn't dare gossip behind her back – let alone in front of her face. It almost amused her to see the cheerleader getting distressed, not knowing whether or not to pass the juicy gossip on. Finally, the cheerleader must've decided not to, as she quietly – and not too enthusiastically – reported back to Ino.

Again, she could feel her anger multiply by tenfold just by thinking about that godforsaken blonde. Just by enrolling into high school, she had successfully won about _everyone _over – and Ami had had to settle for second place when it came to power, beauty and influence.

But one day, Yamanaka Ino would be out of the game – hopefully before the senior prom next year, Ami hoped with glee. It'd be wonderful if she stayed just to watch Ami getting the honorable title 'prom queen'. Naturally Sasuke would be the 'prom king'… oh, the _triumph _of snatching The Academy and her boyfriend right out of her claws just the way Ino had done to Ami when she enrolled in The Academy a couple of months after the semester had begun last year.

(Not that Sasuke and Ami _really _had been dating, but it sounded so much better that way, and Ami didn't mind _that _kind of rumor floating about.)

And when that day came, Ami would no longer be succumbed to sucking up to her and keeping up this false friendship both of them knew was all pretending and keeping your rep in check. She'd make Ino's life into such a hell, so that she'd have to _worry_ about _how_ to suck up to Ami.

Just the thought made her non-existent heart _almost_ become warm.

"… concerning the final exams, I've discussed having an essay-writing with Tsunade-sama," the young and slightly inexperienced teacher Umino Iruka droned on in the front of the classroom; the few that listened groaned at this piece of (non)valuable information, "but she suggested having an oral presentation. That is actually a much better idea than writing an essay, as essays can be copied."

" But Iruka-sensei," Ami smugly chose to interrupt with a fake innocent voice as she pouted believingly with (what Sakura referred to them as, fish) lips. "You can copy oral presentations as well. It's just like essays, just that you read them out loud."

An oral presentation was the last thing she needed this semester. What with her evil plans of trying to overthrow Yamanaka Ino and all, it'd be much too trouble to have to be graded concerning such a thing; essay-writing was so much easier in comparison – all she needed was an all-too-willing-to-suck-up-to-her geek that she'd promise the honor to be in her company for a day or two.

Iruka heaved a sigh and put his hands on his hips in a rather demonstrative manner. "Ami –" (Ami noted that he was the sole teacher of the entire school that refused to use surnames,) "- I'd rather much prefer if you raised your hand next time you need to pose a question – or your opinion, for that matter. Anyway, you can either choose to have an oral presentation or a live essay-writing."

Ami chewed on her L'Oréal GlamShine-ed bottom lip (version 'Bubbly') as she contemplated her options. Neither one was particularly convenient for her liking. Although there _always _was an alternative that could be applied to any option that'd make them more favorable. That was the ground rule for any strategic bitch whose plans went wrong.

"Sensei, it'd take too long time if everyone presented their projects individually. Wouldn't it save time if we were divided into groups and presented our work together?" she suggested innocently. _And also, that means I can choose some random geek willing to do my work for me. And all I've to do is to read the finished thing out loud… while plotting against Miss Barbie._

The slightly dark-skinned teacher considered this, a frown gingerly placed unto his face as more classmates seemed to absorb this conversation with mild interest. "Fine. But I choose the groups. Ami, you're with Sumiko."

Said girl – which unfortunately for Ami was one of her fellow cheerleaders, leaned across her desk, her long (fake) blonde hair swishing across it like a curtain is suddenly placed in front of a window, smelling strongly, and unmistakably, of _Can Can_ (naturally Paris' newest perfume, because that was _in_ and _Heiress _was _out_) as her blue (lenses) eyes glittered with glee.

_Oh great. Another brain-dead, anorexic wannabe-Barbie,_ Ami thought as she scanned the preppy-looking, enthusiastic girl with disgust as she whispered eagerly, "It's going to be a pleasure working with you, Ami-senpai!"

Ami decided that she _definitely_ was in urgent need of a new diamond ring.

* * *

"Ino-senpai. Ino-senpai."

"_Thanks for the date," he said politely, looking her into the eyes. She smiled her typical magazine-cover smile at him – and was then surprised to feel a light pressure on her cheek. He had _kissed _her! For once! On his own initiative!_

"Ino-senpai. Ino-senpai!"

"… you're paired with Yamanaka Ino."

"Yes?" she called out absent-mindedly, but the girl beside her – she had a faint suspicion her name was Yuzuki, but she wasn't quite sure; all cheerleaders were too alike to be told apart unless at emergencies or if they were of particular rank – shushed her immediately.

"Ino-senpai, Ami-senpai told me that she's coming as well. She mentioned something about 'low-life nobodies'," her eyes dashed nervously in Ami's direction, who seemed to be sulking because of the much too enthusiastic Sumiko disturbing her peace, "but I've no idea who she means. But don't tell anyone, especially _her_, I said that," she quickly threw in for good measure, as was the custom for any gossipers.

"Of course. My lips are sealed. But really, Yuzuki, you don't have to call me senpai. We're the same age. Actually, I think I'm a bit younger than you since my birthday is this fall, and wasn't your birthday during the spring?"

"Yeah, it was!" Yuzuki beamed in honor because Ino had remembered this. "But I must call you senpai, Ino-senpai…after all, you're the cheerleader captain. And Sasuke-kun's girlfriend."

_Sasuke-kun's girlfriend. __**Sasuke**__-kun's girlfriend. Sasuke-kun's __**girlfriend**_.

Just that thought alone offered her extreme glee to the point that she could have stood up and danced if she had wanted to. But for now, there were other things to concentrate on. Such as gossip.

"What's up with Ami? She doesn't look happy," she stated innocently.

'Not happy' was the understatement of the year. The fake blonde looked like she was ready to kill any minute, and the most likely victim would probably be Sumiko.

"Yeah, she was paired up with Sumiko." Yuzuki scoffed. "Personally, I think Sumiko is a pain in the ass. She's sucking up to you guys _so_ bad, it's obvious she's just faking it."

Realizing that she had gone too far, she quickly patched things up by adding, "But she's nice sometimes. I guess she's just having an identity crisis – but hey, who isn't?" She laughed somewhat nervously, but Ino had already lost interest in the subject.

"Pairs? I think I heard my name before. What's the assignment?"

"Well, our final grade will depend on this oral presentation we're going to do with a partner though. I don't know who your partner is, though," Yuzuki said apologetically, "'Cause I was calling on you, and you didn't hear me. But I think it was some Akimichi guy… what were you thinking about anyway, Ino-senpai? Sasuke-kun?"

A glint of envy but definite curiosity and interest sparkled in Yuzuki's eyes as she said it. Ino knew that telling the truth would probably result in hatred from the girl, so she decided to smoothly change the topic. "No, actually I was thinking about the cheerleading competition. You know, a lot of countries are going to participate, so Tsunade-sama said it's going to be like, a big event. We've to _really_ prepare."

"You're not going to have practice _this_ afternoon, are you, Ino-senpai?" Poor Yuzuki looked almost terrified. "We don't have too long until the party starts – it begins at seven, and this class ends at, like, three. You probably don't know what a _mess_ my hair can be like…" She flicked her somewhat tousled, caramel blonde hair sadly, "… _Ino-senpai's_ hair is perfect. It's flowing and has volume but is neither curly nor straight, so it can be both. Most of the time, it's straight. I wish I could have that kind of hair… and it's so smooth and shiny, too."

"Oh, you're exaggerating," Ino smiled. "Actually, my hair –"

"Ino, would you please not talk about your hair in class? I'm sure that whatever hairstyle you're going to have to the Sand siblings' party will be great, so can you discuss this non-existent issue after class?" Iruka almost pleaded her. Ino merely rolled her eyes. She felt sorry for him in a way, but it had been no excuse to publicly humiliate her.

_Whatever. My happiness still remains from last time, so it doesn't matter; I'm cheery anyway._

She stifled a contented sigh as she thought about how he at least had _struggled_ to keep the date pleasant, how he had _tried_ to listen why she talked about this fall's fashion concerning accessories while they browsed the night markets…

_My plan is working, _she mused delightfully, _but then again, when does my plan _not _work?_

"… Naruto and Hinata, I expect you to at least not receive as low a grade as usual, Naruto…"

A murmur passed through the class at the mention of the bizarre pair. But then again, they seemed to be friends, so it couldn't be too bad; although Naruto's (hidden) fangirls did not look too happy at these news.

"Sakura and Sasuke. I expect excellent work from you both; you're both model students and top students of the entire year – no, the entire school."

Dead silence. Then it began (_him with _her?! _what?! is _she _really one of the smartest in our year? well, she _does_ look like a geek)_, but only Ino remained smiling. This would be an even better cover-up for their lessons.

"Silence!" Iruka demanded, but nobody listened as they continued to blabber on. "Silence!"

Finally, the awaited sound of the bell saved them from whatever lecture Iruka had decided not to spare them. Without even waiting for Iruka to dismiss them, the crowd quickly dissipated from the classroom like a starved flock of wild boars who had just found prey; only waving or shouting swift goodbyes before exiting. Ino calmly collected her things in her purple Prada bag and was about to leave when a rather (large) hand suddenly stopped her.

Swirling around, she stood face to face to the (_not fat not fat not fat_) guy that had eaten chips and helped her to the classroom a couple of days prior. She smiled as kindly as she could, hoping she wouldn't frighten him.

"Hey," she began at the same time as he started stuttering, "I-it'll be m-my pleasure w-working with you!" in a manner not too different from Hinata. Only after he finished did he notice that she had spoken to him in the first place, and his cheeks turned redder than they already were.

"So… let's meet someday after school and discuss this, okay? I really don't have time right now. I've to see someone." She flashed her on-cover smile again to make up for what she had done, and she could feel his impressed stare. "I'll see you around, Akimichi-kun."

And with those words she promptly exited the classroom, leaving him behind. _There are more important things to deal with at the moment than taking care of a measly group project that needs to be handed in several months from now_, was the thought that crossed Ino's mind.

* * *

"These blasted fools! It's so typical of them to be so careless. Oh, they must be delightful; they never liked the alliances of Konoha so much anyway. It's probably a very _convenient _timing for them – trust the bloody Uchihas to pick a weekend to go overseas and discuss business when _royalty_ is in town," Hiashi snarled furiously as he slammed his fist on the table. "The _Sand _siblings nonetheless! They've completely revolutionized the entire Suna. With them on our side, who knows what benefits there would be for our company? But of course the Uchihas had to spoil our _only _chance to win the Sand siblings over fully. Naturally."

Hinata was silent in response. As always.

It wasn't like Hinata didn't _have _a response. She did – about just a hundred of them – swirling around in her brain, but she didn't dare voice them. She knew what response she'd get if she did, so it wasn't worth the trouble.

For instance, she could easily point out that it wasn't their _only_ chance. As Suna's and Konoha's alliance had become particularly strong as of lately, the Sand siblings frequently traveled to and forth between the two cities to talk business – it had just been a bigger deal this time as they were supposed to stay for the night, but it was more or less the same thing, just that they were available in the morning as well. But as the young Kazekage was very little of a morning person, he liked to avoid discussing such things in the morning, so it made no difference either way.

Or she could always say that the Uchihas had been the ones to suggest the alliance in the first place, then had their suggestion supported by Yondaime Hokage, it had finally been put through to the council and suggested to the other council of the neighboring city.

And she could always suggest that being the heiress of Hyuuga, she had been taught how to act in business, and she could always been the one to try to persuade them to support the Hyuugas fully. Considering how she was more their age, it was most likely that they'd listen to _her_, and also, since she was obliged to attend school, she didn't have to follow her father overseas (which to her was a great relief).

But she said none of this. When Hyuuga Hiashi was on a rampage, it was no use trying to stop him. Those who got in the way didn't get out of his verbal missile range safely; this especially included Branch members, which he often unleashed his anger on. Therefore they stayed back whenever they were warned of Hiashi being in a bad mood, as it'd only worsen his mood further if he caught sight of them and mocked them.

In a way, she wished that he wouldn't have. Then at least Neji would be here, and the bodyguard had been assigned to protect her, after all.

She recalled the dislike in his eyes, the disgust whenever his eyes set sight on her, and she immediately retracted the thought. He'd most likely do nothing at all, if Hiashi ordered it to be that way. After all, he had no need to go against the clan leader for the sake of Hinata.

So Hinata stayed quiet, and let her mind wander.

It had always been like that, and in Hinata's opinion, it'd probably always be. It had been a habit for too long; after having been isolated from 'normal' people until the ripe age of five and repeatedly told that she was 'special', she no longer knew how to speak to others. And in return, no one would speak to her – only behind her back or tease her, because as Hinata had always thought, she was indeed peculiar.

For a very, very long time, Hinata had suspected she was peculiar – but not in a good way. Heiresses were raised to think that they were above anybody else. Hinata was told that she was more or less like a princess without a crown, and that she lived the life of her princess.

_But if this is the life of a princess,_ she'd desperately think, _I don't want to be one._

And that's when she saw _him._ It was undeniably cliché, Hinata had to admit, but from the moment she saw him, she knew he was different. She knew that he was just like her, just in a totally different way – however that was possible.

And she smiled, and she hoped that he one day would approach her.

He didn't. He desperately tried to approach everybody else – and she'd be impressed by his courage – and he'd fall when he tripped, but nobody would help him up. One particular day was as fresh in her mind as if it had occurred yesterday.

She closed her eyes and muted the sound of her father's tantrum, recalling _that day._

It had been a rather rainy day. No, _rather _was not the word – the curtain of rain had been so thick that it looked like mist, and it fell so fast that you couldn't even hear the usual smattering against the window panels. It'd just pour right down and wash the window-panels as some kind of waterfall.

But the other children didn't care. They were out playing, splashing in the pools and shrieking and giggling when their hoods would fall off from their heads, the cold raindrops hitting their skulls. But Hinata hadn't – _couldn't_ – joined them.

Besides the idea that she was a total outcast socially, Hinata also had had health problems at an early age. She had been told by the doctor that she had to be careful, as her skeleton was broken very easily, and also, her asthma hindered her from exhausting herself. Medication would endanger her already fragile health, so they decided she'd be better off just taking easy until she was older.

So that particular day, she'd sit there and watch the rain pour as the other children, dressed in raincoats and colorful boots that covered half their legs, would walk out in the rain and play. It ached when she saw them, happy despite the bad weather. Sometimes she wondered why she had been put among others if she was going to be just as lonely as if they hadn't been there at all, but her father had told her to 'get to know her future business partners'. Not that she knew what it meant, but he'd scold her if she didn't obey him. He always did.

One particular boy was _him_. Bright blonde, tousled hair and shining azure eyes. Hinata had overheard her mother telling him that they'd pick him up after lunch break from kindergarten and buy him a new toy. He had become happy at these news; but when lunch break was over, his parents still weren't there. At times she'd catch him stare anxiously out of the window, and she'd watch him with an unspoken curiosity. She wanted to tell him it was going to be alright, that he needn't worry; but she found no voice to speak.

Afternoon came, and the rain poured harder. To the point that the children couldn't even be outdoors. It was impossible to see anything at all due to the water streaming down through the windows, and Hinata could see him getting more worried by the second. He was playing alone, as usual, when he suddenly arose and announced to one of the adults in charge that he needed to go out and 'get fresh air'.

She had been unable to walk out to see him, so she opened the door slightly to see him outside. And indeed, there he was, screaming for his parents and trying to pry himself loose from the woman who was holding him by his waist. Finally, after having successfully hit her twice in the face, she dropped him angrily and told him that he could try to run if he wanted to, but he still couldn't get out of the yard, as he needed a key and he wasn't tall enough to reach the lock anyway.

This piece of information finally caused him to sink down next to the wall underneath the little roof situated above his head. Hinata felt her gut instinct telling her to let go of the door and comfort him, say a couple of reassuring words. But her grip only slackened just the slightest as she hesitated.

And then _she _came. Apparently she had just been at the gate, seeing her friend, Yamanaka Ino, off. She was happily skipping down the road back to the building while humming some kind of song, when she caught sight of him. As though she had never seen him before.

"What're you looking at? Is there something on the ground?" she questioned as she curiously leaned closer to follow his gaze.

Surprised, he could only reply, "No. I'm waiting for my parents."

"Well, so am I. Do you want to play?" she asked, apparently bored after her friend had left. His face immediately lit up with the widest grin Hinata had ever seen him wear, and he could barely contain his enthusiasm as they started to discuss what they were going to play. All day long they played, and he looked so incredibly happy.

Maybe it was that that gave him the courage. Maybe he just felt for challenging fate. Either way, Hinata didn't know, and either way, she was grateful.

The same afternoon, her personal caretaker would pick her up when it was time for supper. Unfortunately for Hinata, Hyuugas liked to eat late, and so she was stuck in kindergarten. Unfortunately for her, her usual bullies were also bored the same afternoon due to the rainy weather and chose that day to pick on her.

"Weirdo," they'd say, "mute old lady. Can't you talk? Are you that afraid of us? Maybe you'll pee your pants. Hey, have you ever tried sticking your head down the toilet?"

Hinata was afraid of them. They were Neji-onii-san's age, and normally, he might have protected her, but Neji didn't attend kindergarten. Unlike Hinata, he was taught martial arts and was educated by his own father. Hinata's father didn't have time for that kind of things. He was a busy man and very different from Hizashi-ojii-san – even if there was only an age difference of an hour or two, they were worlds apart.

Just like she and Neji. And just like these bullies and herself.

She wanted to speak, she wanted to scream. But she couldn't find it. She couldn't summon her voice to tell them off, to tell them to go away.

And then, out of nowhere, _he _spoke up. "Hey, what're you guys doing?"

One of the bullies looked up, then scoffed scornfully. "Oh, it's only _you_, Uzumaki. We're having fun, don't disturb."

"Unless you want to join," one of the other bullies offered with a smug smirk. Hinata's eyes widened as she saw his surprise; he had never been asked by them to join before. Surely he'd do such a thing now, even if it meant bullying someone as meaningless as her?

But after his surprise had passed, he merely crossed his arms at the idea. "That's stupid. You guys are stupid."

"What," one of them seethed as he towered – because he was indeed taller than him – over him, "did you say?"

"I said that you're stupid. You can go to hell."

Hinata stifled a gasp. _Such a dirty word!_ She was torn between feeling appalled and impressed. How dared he say such a thing in such a situation? Wasn't he afraid of getting beaten up?

"Oi, what're you up to?" a second voice spoke up – one that Hinata didn't recognize. She looked up and saw a suntanned boy with black, slit-like eyes; his hair was ruffled and hazel, and he had red markings painted on his face. He was strangely reminiscent of the boy named Uzumaki, but as a polar opposite. His hands were on his hips as he raised an eyebrow at the scene.

"Inuzuka," the one that had towered over the blonde boy hissed, narrowing his eyes. "Stay out of this."

"Hey, we better go," the other nervously said as he started to tug on the first's sleeve. "His family is scary. And they've got dogs. I don't want to get rabies. C'mon, let's just go."

The first reluctantly left after a 'threatening' warning thrown Hinata's way. The "dog-boy" looked from one to the other, and heaved a sigh as she walked towards Hinata. She cowered slightly under his interrogating gaze. Then he stretched out his hand with a wide grin, "You're just gonna sit there forever, or what?"

"Naruto!" Hinata had heard the pink-haired girl's voice shout. "Are you coming?"

The blonde boy immediately reacted. "Oh, yeah! I'm coming!" And so he ran off, without another word. Hinata's milk-colored eyes followed his back. _Uzumaki Naruto,_ she thought somewhat dreamily, hiding a smile. _My savior._

"My name is Inuzuka Kiba," the dog-boy interrupted her thoughts, making her look at him again, "what's yours?"

In her memories, the four years old Hinata slowly opened her mouth to answer for the first time to a stranger that did not belong to the Hyuuga household, all while thinking about the blonde boy; but in reality, Hiashi was screaming for her attention like an abandoned child.

"You!" He glared loathingly at her with eyes so similar her own, but harbored so much hatred she was truthfully afraid of them, "No mistakes are allowed. If Hyuuga and the Sand siblings do not have a valid contract concerning_ trade _by the time I'm home, I'm forbidding you to see _that boy _ever again."

And all of a sudden, she spoke. It was as though she had accidentally left the door to the bird's cage open, and it had suddenly stretched out its wings and ascended skywards. It was strangely relieving, but at the same time, she knew she was being too careless.

"That," she breathed, "I'm sorry I cannot obey, father. At school, I've been paired up with Uzumaki Naruto as my partner for the Social Studies' final oral presentation, which will determine our grade."

"_What_?" her father snapped hostilely, "Are you trying to tell me that he'll now be_ here _as well?"

"That might be a possibility." (_Although, she had to admit, just the thought offered her a churning feeling in the stomach as though she was sent into some kind of never-ending, gravity-defying tunnel where she'd float forever, and she'd feel nauseous and happy at the same time – kind of like how she felt whenever she looked into his eyes, just even worse)_

A string of colorful swear words escaped his lips. "Konoha these days," he finally grumbled. "Well, I'll see about that when I return… meanwhile, discuss the gifts he expects by 'trading'… do mention that his father has already signed a contract, and that if he finds it too troublesome for his liking, all he needs is to sign it. Do you understand, Hinata?"

The churning feeling in her stomach disappeared in the fraction of a second, replaced by a heavy feeling, as though someone had just dropped a stone there; for a moment, she wondered if her nausea was enough to make her puke.

"Yes," she responded, voice immediately devoid of emotion. "I understand, father."

* * *

"Hello, my sweethearts. Are you ready for a shower of Care Bear love?"

"…"

"Kakashi-sensei, are you, like… high?"

"…Seriously, Naruto, you think he's going to answer honestly to that?"

"Kakashi, keep your pathetic pedophile remarks to yourself."

The silver-haired man heaved a sigh blocked by the white mask covering his mouth and nostrils, scratching his skull in a defeated manner as he eyed the four adolescents before him. "Man, you guys sure lack humor, don't you?"

"… Your humor is sick," Sasuke drawled while crossing his pale-skinned arms with an eyebrow raised high. "Just get to the point why you're here already."

"Why, is it a crime to come to see my _lovely children_? I feel like I haven't had time for you lately."

"You _never _have time for us," Kiba objected, and then added in disgust, "You aren't my dad. I already have one."

Kakashi sighed once more. "My, youths these days. Aren't you rude."

"Just get to the point," Sasuke repeated as Neji rolled his eyes, leaning against the wall in silent apathy.

"Well, well. I think that as your manager, I've the right to tell you that we're desperately in need of a new album."

Sasuke's eyebrow traveled up higher; Naruto secretly wondered if it could reach all the way to the roots of his hair. "Why? Wasn't our concert _a success_, as you told us?"

"Definitely. But bands from Sound are spawning as fast as cockroaches. You better get started on a new album before the end of this semester, or else we'll be knocked down from our spot in the top ten hit list."

Sasuke's knuckles tightened as he glared at his mentor. "What does Sound know about music?"

The latter raised an eyebrow in response as he said calmly, albeit warningly, "More than you know, Sasuke. Two years is a period long enough for them to learn some new things."

Silence. Then, Kiba chose to speak up; "So, the deadline is before the end of the semester, right? All we need to do now is work our fingers and throats sore, then we can kick Sound's ass with some badass rock songs."

"See, that's the problem." Kakashi's lips twitched underneath the black mask; the boys were strongly suspecting he was smiling – well, except Naruto, whose mind had drifted to ramen, as he found the conversation rather boring. "Rock is out."

Neji finally detached himself from his precious wall and approached the group, a look of disbelief plastered onto his pale face. "What do you mean? What do you expect us to do – rap?"

Naruto snapped out of his dream reverie as his eyes twinkled in an almost comical manner at the word. "Oh yeah, we could be like, _Konoha Thug Life_, or something. You know, like Tupac's old crew, just with Konoha added to it. Or we could start this whole new thing, like K-Unit –"

"That's lame," Sasuke interjected with a sneer, "You're just ripping off already existing crew names. And besides, doesn't K-Unit lose the meaning if you remove 'G'?"

"No, we could be like, the _Kangstaz._ Oh yeah, homie, mah mad rappin skillz are _KANGSTA._"

"… Moron," the rest of the band chorused in monotone, causing Naruto to glare at them, opening his mouth to protest.

"Anyway," Kakashi cleared his throat, amused, "While I'm _completely _convinced that Naruto's, eh, _mad rapping skills _are perfectly good enough, I wasn't talking about hiphop. I was thinking more about love songs. Rock love songs."

Once again, silence. Then, four voices at the same time in blank disbelief, "What?"

Or rather, two. The other half was shrieking in disapproval, namely Naruto and Kiba.

"_Love _songs?" Neji spat, as though the pure word was a direct insult to his (full-blown) ego.

"You can _not _be serious," Sasuke snarled in quite the same tone.

"No, I'm absolutely serious. While we get quite the crowd of fangirls due to our high bishounen factor, we could get an even bigger. Love songs, especially rock ones, are pretty huge right now. And what with you all being bishies and all, you can pretty much expect more swooning fangirls at your feet."

"Perfect," Sasuke drawled sarcastically, "Fangirls _and_ love songs."

"Well, see it this way – it's a challenge. Do you've the guts to do it, or are you chickening out?"

Sasuke recoiled in hesitation, and Kakashi saw to his glee that the others were struggling with their inner turmoil – the thought of being embarrassed of being caught on-stage singing mushy love ballads, or the thought of cowardice.

_Hook, line and sinker._

"Fine," Sasuke snapped at last. "I'm going to do it. I don't know about _them_, though."

"Hey, hey, I'm not the one being afraid of having my true identity as a girl revealed," Naruto retorted.

"Ditto," Kiba threw in.

"… Whatever," said Neji apathetically.

"Good," the manager replied in obvious self-satisfaction, mentally gloating about the success of his devilish plan. "Now, I've some advice for you that will definitely work."

The boys waited in quiet anticipation, as Kakashi joyfully revealed a bag of unidentifiable objects, glee spreading across his face.

_And… drumroll,_ he mentally noted, chuckling at his own wit.

"I advise you to…"

He slowly picked the first object out of the bag in a dramatic manner. It was rectangular and had orange edges, and then…

_TA-DAH!_ he sang in his mind, revealing _Icha Icha Paradise Volume #1_ proudly.

The reactions were quite laughable; Neji recoiled in almost panic, Sasuke glared in disgust, Naruto looked merely bored and Kiba looked… well, to be entirely frank, like he was drooling.

"… read this wonderful book. It's perfect for your album."

"No way in hell," Sasuke, Naruto and Neji automatically replied, although Kiba looked slightly down at his fellow band members' response.

"It might be of great use, you know. As a matter of fact, the creator of this wonderful series – and a bunch of other books – Jiraiya-sama himself is going to be present at the concert."

_It's a novel written by Jiraiya-sama,_ Sakura's voice distinctly echoed in the corners of Sasuke's mind as he could vaguely hear the rest of the band protest against Kakashi's proposal. It reminded him of their planned rendezvous later; the mere thought made him grit his teeth in annoyance.

"No? Really?" Kakashi shook his head. "And the tabloids wonder why your love lives are so uninteresting…"

_Well,_ Kakashi concluded as his onyx eyes fell upon the discontented Uchiha prodigy who was, as usual, exchanging insults with his blonde best friend, _it's going to be happening more interesting things soon to two of you soon, at the very least…_

* * *

Shikamaru didn't care too much if others were late.

If he did, people (okay, not so much people as Chouji, Kiba and Naruto) would say, "You're one to talk."

Although, to be entirely honest, and putting Shikamaru's entire (hidden) pride concerning his extraordinary laziness aside, Shikamaru was _never_ late.

He was just inattentive, liked to take it easy and preferred sleep over adventures

(_and being forced to attend such petty things as his friends' concert)_

but truth be told, Shikamaru was never late. Okay, never would be a slight exaggeration, so seldom would be a better word.

Therefore, when Yamanaka Ino arrived two hours later than they had decided, fuming and with a face expression that clearly spoke of murder, Shikamaru merely opened one eye and gazed up at her in complete boredom.

"I'm sorry for being late," she growled in a manner reminiscent of an angered cat.

He merely exhaled in exhaustion and dusted off his pants as he arose. "Well, whatever. I had a nice nap."

"I can't believe that you're taking naps in the middle of the day. That's unhealthy, you know – that means you can't get enough sleep during the night."

"Don't worry about me, I sleep well enough at night too. So, are you going to tell me why you're screaming bloody murder without saying it out loud, or am I waiting for you to finish the preparations for your coming rant?"

She looked startled by this blunt approach, opening her mouth to protest – then closing it again, deciding against whatever she had prepared to say. She adapted a questioning face expression instead, frowning slightly, her baby-blue eyes narrowing just the slightest.

"I know women," Shikamaru sighed tiredly, "Well, your type anyway. My mom is like that."

Ino seemed as though she wasn't too flattered by the remark, but before she could retort anything that'd perhaps anger herself more than it would him, Shikamaru cut her mental turmoil off. "Well? Are you going to tell me or not?"

"Oh, _fine_," she snapped at last, "It's Watanabe Ami."

He arched an eyebrow in surprise as they started to walk down the road towards the center of Konoha. "Watanabe? I thought you were best friends."

Ino heaved an annoyed sigh, her frown deepening further. "Yeah, that's what it seems to everyone else. But she's a real bitch. She only sucks up to me because I'm Sasuke-kun's girlfriend, you know – and oh, because all the cheerleaders are on my side. If they were on _hers_, I'd probably eat alone in some toilet stall every lunch break."

Pausing temporarily, she glared straight-forward, before continuing; "But it's so obvious she's just waiting for some chance to like, knock me off from my position, or something. She's totally head-over-heels in love with Sasuke-kun, so now she bribed my agency into having me join her company's advertisement video this weekend."

"Agency?" echoed Shikamaru, raising his left eyebrow.

"Modeling agency, duh. It's a great chance of course, the Watanabe corporation is huge – but of course there's a catch; I've to bring _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ with me to the ad video."

"And that's so horrible because…?"

"You don't get it, do you? During this entire ad video recording thing, I'm going to have to listen to whatever she says, because she's the boss, obviously. And Ami is such a _bitch_."

"Yeah, I've heard," he responded absent-mindedly. Then, "But if you see it from the bright side, you're going to be with your boyfriend all weekend."

"I guess," said Ino, seeming somewhat more content with the thought. "But still. I can't believe it. Like it isn't bad enough I've to see her everyday in school…"

"How troublesome," he sighed. "It's much more easier just to have a couple of good friends. This popularity thing is too much trouble. Speaking of which, I was thinking we were going to meet today."

"Really?" Her eyes sparkled with curiosity. Shikamaru was a mysterious person; maybe his friend was as well. (_And hot. So what if she had a boyfriend? It never hurt to have some eyecandy, did it?)_ "Who would that be?"

"Chouji. He's my best friend."

"Chouji…," she tried out the name. "I've never heard of him before. Does he attend our school?"

"Figures as much that you wouldn't know. And yes, he does attend our school."

"Who is he th –"

She was cut short by the arrival of a third voice. "Shikamaru, I brought BBQ chi…" The boy trailed off, eyes wide, as he dropped his plastic 7-11 bag in surprise. Ino wondered if her eyes were just as wide as well; she could feel her eye muscles stretch at the sudden shock.

"Akimichi-kun?!"

* * *

Hinata hurried down the corridors of the Hyuuga compound.

Okay, it wasn't as much _hurried _as it was _walking at a slightly faster pace_. Heiresses were never allowed to jog, let alone run. So Hinata did her best to march all the way to her room as fast as possible without being caught with the _shameful act of running_; she needed to get prepared, and that fast. God knew when the others were going to pick her up, they were always –

Hinata's mental rant was cut short abruptly as her mind vaguely registered crashing into someone. She backed a couple of steps and bowed her head in shame, her cheeks aflame. "My apologies. I wasn't careful, I –"

"Hinata-chan?" a voice interrupted her again, amused.

The girl looked up in surprise, her own eyes connecting with a pair of hazel ones. Dark chocolate-colored hair in two buns, and a fringe that almost covered her entire forehead… it could only be –

"Tenten-san," she said out loud, then beamed in joy. "Tenten-san! It has been so long!"

"How many times do I need to tell you to stop saying '-san'? It sounds so… _old_." The other, slightly taller girl heaved a sigh as though she could simply not believe what she was hearing. "Speaking of which… you've grown, Hinata-chan."

"So have you," Hinata smiled in response. "Two years have passed pretty fast. How was China?"

She shrugged in indifference. "It was good, I guess. I mean, their martial arts wasn't that much of a challenge, but the opponents were entertaining enough. I didn't find my family, though."

"Oh." The heiress' happy face dropped. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I never knew them anyway, so it's not that much of a loss for me. Besides, I've got you and Neji, don't I?" she grinned. "And Lee, too. Man, I haven't heard his _youthful_ speeches in ages. I can't believe I've missed them."

A giggle emanated from Hinata's lips at the thought of the bizarre, comical friend of Tenten's and Neji's

(_although the latter preferred not to admit it)_

with his bowl cut, his thick eyebrows and his constant, weird speeches. "I can't quite believe you, either."

"It's been too long. Being away for an extended period of time does weird things to people." She shook her head. "So, how's everyone? Did anyone hook up?"

"Well, they're fine… and yes, Sasuke-kun and Ino-san are a couple now. And Naruto-kun and Sakura-san…" She trailed off, looking away in obvious discomfort; but Tenten was too shocked to notice.

"_Uchiha_?" she spluttered in disbelief. "He's _back_? And he has a _girlfriend_? Wow. As much as he used to hang out with Naruto, I used to think he had the hots for him. I thought he was cute but _so _obviously gay, you know? And then there was that first kiss and all…"

The memory made Hinata laugh; the first time the infamous best friends had first met in kindergarten, they had been accidentally pushed into a kiss that would never be forgotten by their fellow classmates, and a memory that was still equally fresh as though it had just happened yesterday in their minds. However, with Sasuke looking ready to kill at any moment, few dared to speak out loud in front of him about it besides Kiba and Neji.

"But geez, that that Naruto got a girlfriend too…" Tenten shook her head again. "Time sure moves fast, doesn't it?"

As she averted her gaze back at the Hyuuga heiress, she saw the melancholy in her eyes at the mention of the subject, and decided to swiftly change the topic.

"So, where're you going? You seem to be in a rush. You normally just don't bump into people like that."

"Oh, I was going to… a party. Or well, for me it's more a business meeting. And the others pulled me along, too."

"A party, huh?" Tenten whistled. "Who knew. Hyuuga Hinata, the party girl. So, whose party is it?"

"It's the royal Sand Siblings'. And I'm not a party girl, Kiba-kun is forcing me… and besides, father wants me to see Kazekage-sama to discuss… business." She finished the sentence with uneasiness; the topic itself was enough to make her nauseous, something that Tenten seemed to notice, as she instead lit up.

"Hey, I bet you're a professional makeup artist, but nobody ever puts on makeup on you. Or, well, the Hyuuga makeup artists probably do, but –" She lowered her tone, and crouched slightly, lowering her height in a mockingly childish manner. " – don't tell them I said this, but they probably _suck_."

Hinata merely giggled. Straightening up again, Tenten seemed happy with the outcome of what she had done as she started marching in the same direction as Hinata had intended to go. "So, let me do the makeup, eh? I'm going to make you the prettiest girl at the party."

The heiress nodded with a smile, but it went unnoticed by the girl in front of her, whose back was turned away from her face. The aforementioned stopped abruptly, looking across her shoulder with an impish grin. "And one more thing. Don't tell Neji I'm back, okay?"

* * *

Sometimes she wondered if she'd ever listen.

It was a habit. It had originated from long ago, when he'd loudly scream about whatever he had on his mind, turning everyone in his presence deaf (which would unfortunately be her and _him_). So she blocked his talk out, letting him enthusiastically rant on about whatever he felt for without actually paying attention.

She turned up the volume of her mp3, a little bit to hear the lyrics clearly. It was _that _song, the song that had become her bible the last five years.

"_You know the stories_," Jojo's voice chanted into her ear. "_You read the books; boy meets girl, then they fall forever in love; but I know better, so here goes a tale; of the realest of real – listen…_"

"… I guess you're kinda stressing out, since you just got out of the hospital and now you've to go a party and all," his voice cut through the intro of the song.

Sakura shrugged, her face expression that of indifference. "It wasn't that difficult today. Just filling out a couple of papers and treating to some patient who had broken his leg."

'_Now, once upon a time, in a small world, it was everything that I dreamed of; he was my gem and I was his pearl – nothing could come between us…_'

It was a lie, of course. Her 'boyfriend tutoring' with Sasuke had thankfully ended right on time

(_he didn't want to waste any time on _her_ anyway – not anymore_)

so she had had time to hurry back to the hospital, pretending to have been there all along. Tsunade hadn't been too happy that she had missed out on an afternoon shift _and _being told to lie to Naruto, so she had promised her to make up for it later by buying sake.

'_Used to believe in love; used to believe in fairy tales…_'

"So, you're coming to the party after all? It took me some convincing," he grinned widely, apparently thrilled at the news.

"Yes, I guess. I don't have much of a choice, do I? The tabloids are going to talk if I don't come."

"Yeah, the tabloids." He paused momentarily, then asked somewhat nervously, "You wanna go together?"

She laughed – but it was hollow, devoid of emotion. It was no sign of happiness, but merely a laugh to show the irony of it all. "I guess. We're a 'couple', aren't we?"

'_Since my heart's been crushed… I don't believe in much; I need help…_'

Silence fell. He knew what she meant; they weren't a real couple, as he was aware of her lack of feelings for him, but they were considered as such. And he wanted to, _desperately _wanted to keep it that way.

"Are you…" He hesitated, then continued with the rest of the question, "Are you okay with that?"

"Of going to the party? Yes." But she knew it wasn't what he meant. She wanted to avoid the question. She wanted to keep _that _that way.

'_But how come each time I open up; I can't get past page one…_'

"No… I was talking about the couple thing. Are you really being fine with us being seen… as a couple?"

He didn't want her to answer. She didn't want to answer. The question would've been left better unsaid, but it was already too late and both were aware of the damage that it'd make either way.

_Yes,_ her heart screamed, _I'm okay with it because I need to get over _him _and you're a perfect rebound case because you know it and you still let me use you mercilessly._

They were nearing her house. She knew she was taking too long to answer, but the answer would deal fatal damage either way, and she spent her time picking the perfect knife to stab him with.

'_I guess it's time for me to close up; and go back to the shelf because I'm done…_'

But her conscience told her otherwise. She didn't _want _to use him. Every day she saw his smile, she'd feel her heart twist uncomfortably inside of her chest. She was hurting him. And she did it willingly, just to use him as a painkiller to numb her heartache.

His voice, his childish, five-year-old voice, echoed in her mind. _Sakura-chan, you want to be a princess? Then I can be your prince!_

_**But you aren't **_my _**prince**_, she argued, her mental voice in plea. _**Get away, get away from me so I can't hurt you.**_

"I…"

'_Don't know which way to turn; figure it out for myself…_'

A bright smile spread from cheek to cheek as she looked at him as though he had just asked the dumbest question she had heard. "What do you mean, if I'm 'okay'? Of course I am! You believe me, right?"

He looked slightly disbelieved, but at least more relaxed than he had before. She only continued grinning. "I'm going to prepare myself for the party, you know. No sneak-peeking before the actual party! So go home and put wax in your hair, or whatever you guys do. Okay?"

He was about to answer when she leaned closer, pressing her lips gently against his cheek, then withdrawing in a flash. "Thanks for walking me home, Naruto."

And then, just as swiftly as she had made her move, she waved and walked beyond the threshold, closing the door in his face. As she leaned against the doorframe, without looking out of the window, she already knew the wide smile he would wear on his face afterwards.

'_Can you help me out; can you tell me what love is all about…_'

The smile he reserved for her. And her only.

Closing her eyes, she slowly sank down, her back sliding down against the door's wooden surface as she seated herself on the carpet, staring at the floor.

_Don't try to save me, Naruto. I know you want to be a prince, and I know you want to save me so we can finally live happily ever after –_

A face surfaced in her mind. A face with pale skin, aristocratic features, obsidian eyes and an arrogant smirk.

_- but I already have a prince._

She put her face in her hands, closing her eyes as she pressed back the tears stinging behind her eyelids.

_Even if he's in the form of a firebreathing dragon._

* * *

Ino felt like a princess.

She was often told she lived the life of a royal, that she was lucky to be Uchiha Sasuke's 'princess', that she was the queen of the school.

But as she elegantly glided about in the room in search for the royal Sand siblings in her deep purple satin bodice dress with its sweetheart neckline decorated with tiny beads and a ballgown ankle-length skirt with chiffon layers, her ears, neck and wrist heavy with jewelry, her pale blonde hair pulled back 

into a stylish knot and held by her arm gently by the most gorgeous guy in the room with looks of admiration and envy thrown her way, she truly felt like a princess.

Her high heels connected with the carpet softly as she slowly marched about in the room rhythmically, when a voice spoke up from beside her. "You look lovely tonight, Ino."

She looked up in surprise; the source of the sound had been Sasuke. His face was devoid of emotion as usual, but at least it had not been an attempt to mock the romantic movie they had seen prior to the Oto concert; she beamed at him, lips meeting his cold cheek as she stopped momentarily. "Thanks, Sasuke-kun. So do you – well, not lovely, but more like, gorgeous."

He smirked his usual trademark smirk. "Hn."

"Ino?" Her name caused her to turn her head in the direction of the name-caller; it was a boy their age dressed in a somewhat loose white shirt with the first two buttons undone and with a lazily tied black tie and a pair of black trousers, and with a blonde girl by his side.

It took her a couple of seconds to put two and two together. "Shikamaru?"

The aforementioned heaved a sigh, scratching his head in an exhausted manner. "No, it's an imposter. What do you think?"

_You can't blame me for not believing my eyes, _she mentally argued as she eyed the girl beside him, who was raising a finely plucked eyebrow at the sight before her. She had never even imagined Shikamaru being present at such a party, let alone present at such a party with a _girl_.

The girl in question was tall – taller than Ino, at the very least, even with Ino wearing high-heeled sandals and the girl wearing low-heeled ones, embroidered with Swarowski jewels; she was wearing a midnight-blue dress that reached all the way to the floor, with a front slit going up to her knee, and a billowy, ruffled skirt. The bodice of the dress was like a top cut in half in the front; it looked like the pieces covering her chest were held together by a silvery string, as there was a cliff in-between; she wore light, natural makeup, but her deep-green eyes still shone as dark jewels. She had a blonde fringe covering almost her entire forehead, but the rest of her somewhat tousled hair had been put into an unique hairstyle consisting of four pigtails.

Ino knew who it was. The pigtails were a dead giveaway if you didn't already know her face; it was Sabaku no Temari, one of the three royal Sand siblings, and the one who was known the most for partying. She was a beauty, but not your average, stick-thin, girly beauty – she had a strange, almost tomboyish nature and pride, but yet she was as womanly as you could get at the unripe age of 18.

But even with all that beauty and uniqueness, Ino noted with strangle, malicious glee that she was not thinner than Ino was, and yet they probably had the same size when it came to curves.

Why she even cared was beyond her.

While she had been mentally scanning and analyzing Temari, her partner for the night had glanced at Sasuke and greeted him with a nod, which was returned. Then, he turned back to Ino, face blank. "By the way, I don't know if you've met before, but this is Temari. Sabaku no Temari. And this is Yamanaka Ino, and Uchiha Sasuke."

"Pleasure to meet you," her voice spoke up icily, a sneer adorning her face; her tone spoke much of the opposite. "Although I already know the Uchiha," she added, glancing pointedly at the merely bored Sasuke.

"We haven't met before," Ino informed Shikamaru, then turned to Temari; "But I know who you are."

"Most people do," she stated matter-of-factly. "I haven't heard of _you_, though."

The statement itself was enough to piss the (thin) blonde off, but she merely forced herself to keep smiling. "Oh, I just got famous recently, so it's no wonder you haven't heard of me."

Temari returned her smile with a mere smirk, and Ino mentally went through a list of how to kill Temari in a hundred different ways; poisoning – shaving off her hair – knife-stabbing – gunshot –

"Anyway, I just came here to tell you about the tutoring," Shikamaru interjected, obviously sensing the tension in the air (_although he was more than just curious to watch any catfight the blondes could possibly engage in)_; "So far, we've done, well, _nothing_. Tomorrow you're coming with me doing some field research in Sound, so you better hide your true identity. The Sound girls won't be pleased if they find out you're Uchiha Sasuke's girlfriend."

_Right. Sasuke-kun's girlfriend._ "Yeah, okay, thanks for letting me know."

"No problem. Have fun," said Shikamaru, departing from the scene with Temari's hand on his arm as they headed towards the dancefloor.

Sasuke, who had been silent the entire time, looked at their retreating backs, seeing their destination, it triggered a mental voice in his head – unfortunately for him belonging to a certain pink-head; _Dance more with Ino tonight. I'm pretty sure you know how to dance, so I don't have to teach you that… but couples usually dance more than just once. And try not to be, you know, too mechanic or cold, when you dance. And compliment her – a lot._

"You want to dance?"

The statement threw Ino off-guard. She had expected having to pose the question herself as he usually didn't like to engage in social activities such as dancing – particularly formal ball dancing. Collecting her calm and forcing herself not to be excited, she switched on a real, natural smile. "Yeah, sure."

As she felt his hand clutching her side gently, her hand resting in his and her other resting on his shoulder and how their feet slowly began to waltz, she closed her eyes and leaned her head slightly towards his shoulder.

Although the excitement and glee about being asked to dance on _his _initiative for once was filling her inside, she could still feel anger and discomfort about the rendezvous earlier – and at the same time, confusion.

_Why do I care? Why _would _I care?_

"Purple suits you," he stated bluntly from nowhere, cutting through her thoughts.

Her eyelids lifting, she withdrew her head, looking up at him thankfully. "Thank you."

_Why would you look at a pauper when you have a prince?_

* * *

_No mistakes are allowed._

Hyuuga Hiashi's voice echoed still in Hinata's mind, even though he had uttered the words several hours ago. Standing shyly in a corner of the ballroom, the Hyuuga heiress scanned the place for the reason she was present tonight – the Kazekage of Suna, Sabaku no Gaara, one of the stars of the party.

As for Hinata, she did not feel even remotely party girl-like, no matter what Tenten had said previously.

Like Tenten had promised, she was dollied up for the party, her dark hair in soft curls, her eyelashes longer than ever with soft navy, slightly sparkly eyeshadow that contrasted her pale eyes; her slightly rosy cheeks made her pale skin look less sickly, and her lips were plump with lipgloss.

Unlike lots of other girls present, she had not followed the princess-y trend this season, and had come dressed in a less-than-appropriate-but-still-elegant evening gown, a monochrome-colored halter dress that revealed more cleavage and part of her slender back than she liked to (but Tenten had, as usual, insisted), with a slit in the side to reveal her creamy legs and her soot-colored high-heels.

Of course, Neji didn't approve of this clothing, but as a lesser-ranked Branch family member, he wasn't allowed to state his opinion.

Even if Hinata knew that if he could, he'd probably utter scathing, hurting words, she desperately wished he would; she hated having others feeling inferior to her – she knew the feeling only too well.

Her gaze stopped on a certain couple on the dance-floor; a girl with shockingly pink, short hair dressed in a sleeveless ebony dress that reached to her knees with a black bow adorning her waist and silver high-heeled sandals with black silk crossing her foot all the way up to her ankle, earning quite a few stares and mocking sneers from watchers due to her inappropriately short dress for the occasion and for her hair color.

And more importantly, the boy whose arm was around her waist.

The boy with the blonde, messy hair and the blue, blue eyes that one could drown in like a bottomless pit, dressed in a tux with a tie that looked even messier than his hair, and with the biggest smile on the face she had seen.

Just like that day twelve years ago.

And even if Hinata knew she was being overdramatic, it _hurt_. Like her stomach had just opened up and everything inside was welling out in streams, and like her heart was being continuously punched.

But she'd hopefully get used to that feeling, because she'd probably see more of it.

"You know, pretty girls should socialize, not go all emo on the sight of their first loves, especially if said first loves are idiots, dance with another girl."

Hinata swiveled around, taken aback by this sudden appearance; she calmed down at the sight of the grinning Kiba, his fang-like teeth making him look slightly animalistic even if he was undeniably handsome in his white shirt, a couple of buttons lazily undone at the top of it and with his tie just as messy as Naruto's – because it was indeed Naruto she had watched earlier.

"Kiba-kun," she stated softly. "Why aren't you dancing, too?"

"That's the question I should be asking you, you know," he argued, heaving a sigh. "How many times do I've to tell you, Hinata? You'll _never _get over Naruto if you never let a guy ask you to dance."

Neji growled in response to his remark, as though he wanted to mark his presence. The brunette merely rolled his eyes. "And _yes_, Neji, I realize that if any other guy would ask Hinata to dance, you'd probably scare him off with your scary white eyes or kill him later, but I'm just any other guy, so _may I_?"

Before the latter could protest, he had already grasped Hinata's hand and started tugging her towards the dance floor. "Ah – but – Neji-onii-san -," she began, slightly panicked, but Kiba cut her off impatiently:

"He's not gonna die out of waiting a couple of minutes. Just this dance, 'kay?"

His arm was around her waist and her hand in his before she could even begin to complain; Hinata's face turned slightly red at the sudden approach, and Kiba grinned, although he felt his heart tug slightly at the action. _So he's not the only one who can make you blush…_

"I just wanna show all the girls who the hottest one is. And sure, they're all hot, but dang, you're first-class, babe. I mean, they're like hamburger meat – it tastes good, but it ain't no class to it, you know? You're like filet mignon compared to them. Get what I mean?"

She nodded slowly, her cheeks heating up a little further at the compliment.

He heaved a sigh as he led her across the room at a slow pace. "I just wanna make you wake up, Hinata. There're other guys but Naruto out there. And I know, I know, you probably don't wanna get over him at all, but this isn't healthy, and you know it."

She looked away, unable to see him in the eyes. She knew it was true; but she didn't want to know the truth. She wanted to live in denial – it was easier this way. Even if it hurt.

"It's just… you deserve so much better. You're… you're awesome, Hinata. You're smart, kind and beautiful. You shouldn't just wait around forever, y'know?"

"Thanks, Kiba-kun… but you don't have to lie to make me feel better," she smiled, finally lifting her head up.

He stared down at her pale, big eyes, her petite nose, her somewhat high cheekbones and rosy cheeks, her not-overly-plump but glossy lips that were pulling upwards in the corners, her smile that was filled with warmth.

"I'm not lying," he said quietly.

"What?" Hinata inquired, leaning closer to be able to hear despite the noise of chatter, music and feet connecting to the floor in slow waltz.

"I think… I think you should get over Naruto," Kiba replied into her ear, his grin wavering only the slightest.

She didn't respond – she was too busy gazing at a certain blonde and his dance partner – but he already knew what her answer was. Despite so, he felt his entire being wanting her to answer the opposite.

_I really think you should._

* * *

"Sakura-chan, you're a great dancer!"

The same thing couldn't exactly be said about the compliment-maker. The pink-head was struggling with trying to keep Naruto away from stepping on her toes, but not with too much concentration. Much like the watcher of this dancing couple, she was watching another couple waltzing across the dance floor with elegance.

"You know, we should really do this more often," her own partner joked, roughly leading her to the left, apologizing to a couple they had not-too-gently bumped into; "But I think you should wear combat boots next time."

No response. Sakura was staring absent-mindedly at somewhere he couldn't see; he frowned, knowing immediately what – or rather, _who _– it was.

"Sakura-chan? Are you okay?"

She was violently jerked back to reality as she looked up at Naruto, surprise glimmering in her eyes; she quickly switched on a smile – that he only knew too well was fake – and responded, "I'm perfectly fine, Naruto! Don't worry about me!"

"… Sakura-chan…"

His plea struck through her eardrums like a thousand arrows, even if it wasn't as loud as his voice usually was. But it was filled with hurt, and that alone was sharp enough to pierce through any remains of conscience she had left.

She slumped in his arms, leaning closer to his chest as she slowed down their pace more than necessary, and for a moment, it seemed like the world, and time, had stopped just for them alone.

"Please," her voice murmured, "just hold me tonight."

But she knew he could, and would, hold her for longer than that. It was a worthless promise with no meaning to it – like an apology with no feeling of remorse. It was a plea to let her go, but at the same time a plea to let her stay.

(_But she knew, and he knew it too, that she was too fragile to be let go of; she'd break, so easily_)

And he dropped her hand, his arms around her waist, holding her closely, tightly, as though if he let go, she'd disappear forever.

Which she'd probably do.

(_And so, he'd never let her go. Never.)_

Even if that meant watching her look him in the eyes and see another person but him. Another prince that wasn't him.

(_Another prince that he dreamed of being but would never be; he'd only be his feeble replacement, the second-hand choice)_

And almost ironically, the only girl who wasn't dressed in garments fit for a princess that night sang softly the last part of the song that had become the story of her life, hidden tears wetting the front of his shirt as she was pressed to his chest, her voice muffled;

"_Don't know which way to turn; figure it out for myself…_"

And if he could cry, he'd cry too, but he only kept smiling, even if he could almost hear the sound of his heart shattering like broken glass.

"_I've just started to learn; there's no such thing as fairy tales…_"

* * *

DUN-DUN-DUN-DUN! Yesss, Temari and Tenten finally appeared. God, this chapter was difficult to write. I had to rewrite it because it was such a pain in the ass, I swear... and oh yeah, Yuzuki and Sumiko aren't THAT important, just random cheerleader OCs, so you don't really have to remember them (although they'll make minor appearances sometimes). And I've to apologize for a couple of things:

1) making Chouji's and Ino's meeting so short (but he's appearing later, trust me)

2) and KIND of making Kiba OOC. Or well, I hope he wasn't, but I'm not that good with writing Kiba's character since I've, well, uh, never seen him in love. And it's my first time writing KibaHina too. u.u; Forgive me?

And by the way, I know it's ironic that Ino is watching Temari and Shikamaru while Sasuke doesn't know; and that Sakura is watching Ino and Sasuke (although Naruto knows); and that Hinata is watching Sakura and naruto (although Kiba knows). But that's supposed to be the point...

As for my personal life, there's nothing new, really. School starts next Monday, and I'm looking forward to it just because I'm going to get to know a bunch of new people (it's FRESHMAN YEAR, folks! But I already know a lot of people in that school), and that is always fun, but it's sad that I'm probably not going to see some of my friends who're in other schools that often anymore, although I've promised to go and visit their schools since I know other people who attend them.

It's just so sad that my mom is being a pain in the ass about me being out every day since she wants me to stay at home and clean my (super)messy room. But EXCUSE-MOOOIII, I'm rather out with my friends than indoors and sorting through god-knows-how-old almost-torn-apart essays with random notes I passed with my classmates during class.

But oh well. I guess it helped me to write this chapter, didn't it?

THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS AND KEEP ON REVIEWING! WE'RE NEARING 100 REVIEWS, FOLKS! (... yesh, i'm a review whore, and you luv me for it.)

P.S. It's funny how I'm always nagging you guys about LOOKING AT DETAILS, but I bet NO ONE has noticed that every other chapter is a rock song and every other a RnB song, since Sakura has stated that she hates rock and prefers RnB. Hah.


	6. o5: a little bit longer

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but I sure wish I did. I mean, seriously, how many more Pein chapters do we've to get through? C'mon, give us some SasuSaku action now that NaruHina is canon already!!!**

* * *

Do you remember when you'd watch cartoons or Disney movies when you were a little kid?

(_"For the last time, Sakura, I refuse to watch _The Little Mermaid_ for the fifth time_._")_

And when the villain would appear, you'd always be so scared that the hero and the girl wouldn't make it?

(_"Aww, Sakura-chan, don't be scared! I, the mighty ninja, will protect you from all evil!"_

_"… __Moron__."_)

But in the end, the hero – the knight in shining armor, the prince, whatever you will – always does.

(_"I _told_ you he'd be alright. This storyline is so predictable. And how realistic is a gigantic **purple** human squid anyway?"_)

And everything is alright in the end. It always is.

(_"I'd like to have my own happily ever after-ending.")_

But how can you guarantee that your life,

(_"Sasuke-kun, do you think you could give me a happily-ever-after ending?")_

your story,

(_"No, I can't.")_

your fairy-tale

(_"There's no happily-ever-after in real life, Sakura.")_

will be alright in the end?

* * *

**o5.**

The Academy was proud of their school pool. It wasn't a rumor – it was a fact.

They had good reason for it, too; even if their soccer team and cheerleading squad were more famous than their swimming team, the architecture gave reason for their boasting. The aqua-colored wave-design on the walls and the ever-so-spotless glass ceiling along with the perfect, gum-and-trash-free stands often made it a popular spot for students to hang out at.

Unfortunately, that was forbidden. Or, well, fortunately for _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and their female entourage.

"Saturdays are _so _slow," Yamanaka Ino complained, dipping her feet in the water as she let her legs dangle from where she sat at the side of the pool, staring at her reflection. "I don't get it – why do we've to attend school Saturdays, too? It's so… _boring_."

"Yeah, like school is _ever _fun," Kiba threw in sarcastically as he swam past her, splashing some water at her ankles.

"Well, it keeps the youths away from committing crimes or other unnecessary activities of the negative sort during weekends, and also educates them further," the band member known for his colorless eyes, Hyuuga Neji, supplied.

Naruto, who had surfaced after ungracefully diving into the pool, stared at him as though he was crazy, stopping mid-swim. "Dude, are you for real?"

Neji shrugged carelessly in response. "That's at least what Tsunade-sama says during political debates."

"I can't believe you actually watch that during your free time," Ino remarked, shaking her head as though he had just admitted he liked walking around the neighborhood selling cookies for the girl scouts.

"It is something all Hyuuga family members must do, even in their free time," Hinata piped up. "Father finds it necessary."

"Speaking of free time," Kiba spoke again, feeling the urge to change the topic from Hinata's family's activities, "don't you have cheerleading practice today, Ino?"

"Yeah, but it's a bit later today. I kind of postponed it because…" She trailed off, throwing a meaningful glance at Sakura, and smiled brilliantly, "I'm going shopping with Sakura. Right, Sakura?"

Said pink-head seemed to awaken from her thoughts at the mention of her name, her head snapping up abruptly. "Uh… yeah."

"Hey, by the way, where's the bastard? I haven't seen him around since lunch break," said Naruto.

"He's in the music room, I think," Ino responded thoughtfully, "he said he had some business to attend to."

"Man, he's a bore sometimes," groaned the best friend of the aforementioned in reply, "we finally get permission to hang out at the school pool 'cause we say that we never get enough exercise in our spare time, and the guy goes to the _music room_? It's not like we don't have instruments at the studio or in the apartment."

"Umm, speaking of which, I've to go to the hospital this afternoon. I've got an extra shift," Sakura nervously commented from seemingly out of nowhere.

A somewhat tense and confused silence followed; the only sound that could be heard was the splashing of water and the piano version of Jonas Brothers' song, _A Little Bit Longer_, drifting out from the speakers – cut short by Ino saying pointedly through gritted teeth, "But you're supposed to go shopping with me, remember?"

The pink-head blinked, looking taken aback by what seemed to be sudden news to her. "… Oh. Yeah. Right. I… forgot."

"What's with you lately, Sakura?" Kiba spoke up as he climbed the ladder and promptly seated himself on the pool edge next to her. "You've been tense the last couple of days, and _he _isn't even around right now."

The reaction was immediate; Sakura's eyes, which had earlier rested on the pool's surface with an indecipherable expression, flew up immediately as she faced him, shock carved into her features. Naruto stopped swimming and stared, bewildered; Neji tensed and gave him a warning look, and Hinata merely looked worried for what would happen next.

Only Ino looked mildly surprised and puzzled. "What? What're you talking about, Kiba? And who the heck is _he_? You can't mean Naruto, right? Because last time I checked, he was still in the pool swimming."

Sakura slowly turned her head towards Ino, racking her brain desperately for any excuse that could save her from the awkward situation. She could make up anything – just _anything_ – but despite having been complimented for her creative imagination, she found no valid explanation available that didn't sound completely ridiculous.

As she faced her best friend, their eyes locking, she wondered if she'd ever extend the hand of forgiveness if Sakura made those baby-blue eyes cry the way it would if she spoke the truth.

She desperately wished to plunge herself head-first into the water and dive to the very bottom and stay there forever – or just gulp down a great amount of liquid, since her throat was immensely dry at this point. Her voice was almost hoarse as she swallowed some saliva to moisten it to no avail.

"I –"

"My, you guys haven't changed at all, have you?"

The timing was almost too clichéd to be true – but Sakura could barely believe her luck, even less breathe, when a certain girl with dark chocolate-colored hair in two buns entered the scene, her combat boots with thin, but low heels making click-clacking noises as she walked towards them.

As she scanned her surrounding friends, she realized they were equally stunned – or startled – at the very well-timed interruption. Except one; a certain blonde in the water, whose same-colored eyes were filled with hurt.

She quickly diverted her gaze away from him.

"Tenten," uttered Neji slowly, pronouncing every syllable clearly, as though his brain had yet to register what was going on.

"Yeah, the one and only," she grinned back at them, glowing with glee as she rested her hand on her hip. "I'm _back_."

"And _hot_," drawled Kiba with a wolfish smirk as he eyed her figure up and down. Arching an eyebrow – and secretly smug about Neji's sudden glare his way – she merely aimed a kick that swiftly landed him back into the pool.

"Hey, what was that for?" he yelled as soon as he had surfaced as Ino stifled a giggle. "I just gave you a compliment!"

"That was to cool your head, Inuzuka. Not all girls are desperate groupies."

"I know that, you didn't have to push me into the pool for it," he muttered sulkily as he once again climbed up the ladder.

"I… have to go to talk to Tsunade-shishou about my hospital shift," Sakura murmured softly as she started walking towards the door, trying to ignore the stare she knew Naruto was giving her.

It was only when she had slammed the glass door shut and was proceeding down the hallway in the direction of the music room that she allowed herself to breathe easy.

_**How much longer can you hide?**_ a voice that sounded too alike Ino's to make her comfortable piped up in her mind. _**You can't run from the truth forever. It's like having a disease; you can't escape it, and you can deny that you have it, but it's there anyway.**_

_But I can, _she argued, _and I'm going to. If it's a disease, there must be a cure. I'm a doctor; I cure diseases._

The voice in her mind made no response.

_When I thought it'd all been done, when I thought it'd all been said, _Nick Jonas' voice almost cruelly chose that moment to sing, his voice slightly raspy from the low-quality speakers in the corridor. It was the only almost-rock song that Sakura could bear listening to, even if it almost tore her apart to hear it.

"_A little bit longer,_" she murmured along as she had done a hundred times before, "_and I'll be fine._"

* * *

"I can _not _believe I'm entrusting my life to you."

"Neither can I."

"Relax, you'll be fine. It's not like I'm going to eat you alive as soon as we're alone, or something."

"We aren't gonna be alone, Tenten. Or actually, I'm not gonna let us be."

"Ooh, that sounds dirty. Actually, I was talking to Neji, not you."

"How the hell can you make _that _dirty?" the person in question snapped, his eyes narrowing.

"'Cause I'm a _nasty girl_," she half-sang, mimicking Destiny's Child song _Nasty Girl_ as she drummed her fingers against the steering wheel in rhythm to the make-believe music. "_You nasty – you trashy – you classless girl_ –"

"… Isn't it dangerous to drive while you're singing?" Naruto anxiously asked, his eyes darting nervously to Neji as though he wanted him to ensure that it was, in fact, safe.

" – _you sleazy – you freaky –"_

But Neji had never been one to come to for bear hugs and sweet words. Instead, he just growled, eyes narrowing further; "And that's why I cannot believe I'm entrusting my life to _her_. I should be the one to drive."

Naruto's eyes widened considerably as he, panicked, reached for the doorhandle of the car. "I'm outta here."

" – _you never met a girl that does the things I do _–"

"Isn't that supposed to be '_I never met a girl that does the things __**you**__ do_'?" Hinata's voice suddenly spoke up from nowhere. The three's heads turned simultaneously in her direction as her face burned in embarrassment.

"You… _listen _to this stuff?" Naruto asked lamely as Neji's face was contorted into a grimace that looked like anger bordering on sheer insanity, mixed with surprise.

"Tenten, what've you _done _to Hinata-sama?" he asked with a forcedly patient voice as his gaze snapped back to the Chinese girl in the driver's seat, whose head was still turned towards Hinata in mild amusement and astonishment.

"Hey, hey, don't blame this on me. I can't help that Hinata-chan doesn't listen to your _suckass _rock –"

"Watch out!" cried Naruto as Tenten's attention was snapped back to the road, where she quickly averted a truck they had been close to crashing into.

"Wow, that was a close one, wasn't it? Hey, what song do you want me to sing now?" wondered the driver cheerfully as though nothing had happened at all.

Neji stared as though as the fact that she was mentally disturbed had just been confirmed. Which, for him, it probably had been. "Get out of the car. I drive."

"Hell no. Hyuuga-senpai didn't even let me drive _once _when we were in China. How come your cousin is _exactly _like you, Neji, and nothing like Hinata-chan?"

"I can see why he didn't let you drive," Neji responded through gritted teeth, ignoring the last remark. "Get out of the car, Tenten. _Now_. It's another twenty minutes left, and I don't plan on writing my will in that short a time."

"You know, twenty minutes is quite a long time. Once, you know, this bus almost fell off this cliff and I wrote my will in twenty _seconds_. It was easy – I just wrote Hinata-chan could have all my clothes, makeup and oh, my diaries, of course. And that you and Hyuuga-senpai could catfight about the rest. I'd enjoy watching that in heaven. So, you see, it's actually not that difficult."

"I – what, you… you keep a diary?" Neji questioned in disbelief, as though that had been the most important of it all.

"Of course. It's fun to read about what we used to do as kids. Do you still remember that time when we had to go on fight camp in 2nd grade, and you had to go and pee, but you were afraid of getting thorns in your ass if you went to the bushes?"

"Tenten. Let me drive. _Now._"

"Ooh, feisty. I like feisty ones – they're better in bed."

As Neji's face turned a deep purple color as he started spluttering (or rather yelling) angered remarks, Naruto decided this would be the most interesting twenty minutes of his life.

* * *

Sasuke loved the music room for two reasons;

1) there were never any fangirls there, as they were not allowed entrance, nor could you hear them thanks to the sound-proof walls

2) it was a peaceful place where only he could create sound alone, unless the band was with him – and then it was just a _tad _noisier, but thankfully, they had sound-isolating headphones that could be connected to the electrical instruments available.

Most of the time, when Sasuke spent his time in there, he'd feel strangely at peace – or well, as much as he could feel at peace; it felt as though nothing really mattered besides him and the music.

However, today was an exception.

"_Wherever you go – whatever you do,_" he sang monotonously, "_I'll be right here waiting for you…_"

He could already hear Naruto's voice in his mind. _Teme, have some feelings! I know it's hard feeling anything when you're an ice cube, but hey, nothing's impossible, right?_

Inwardly, he groaned. Had he been with that oxymoron long enough to even _hear _his voice in his head? It was definitely unhealthy.

Shaking his head as though wishing to shake the blonde's mental presence away, his fingers drummed against the strings as he started singing the chorus of another song. "_But I'll be there forever, you will see that it's better –_"

_Teme, you sound like you're ready to kill. Is that really a __**love **__song?_

"Uchiha-san?"

_Ooooh, I know the problem now. You're afraid of being revealed as a girl, right? That's why you're afraid of showing your feelings, right?_

"Go away," he muttered, eager to get rid of the sound of Naruto's cackling, scorning laughter.

"Um… I see. Maybe I should come back later…," another voice responded somewhat nervously as the sound of steps walking away from him made it to his ears.

Snapping back to reality, he saw long, roseate hair swishing against a school uniform-clad back. "I didn't mean _you_," he growled, irritated at her untimely interruption.

"Oh. Yeah. Sorry," she blubbered, not even quite sure what she was apologizing for. Sasuke stifled a sigh; least to say, the girl was frantic in his presence. Not that he was entirely innocent when it came to that; after all, he had been the one to intimidate her before this entire 'boyfriend test' thing.

But now, when he apparently needed her help, they needed to somehow cooperate. And Sasuke _hated _teamwork.

"Never mind," he muttered as he refocused his gaze on the guitar strings, trying to pick a tune.

"So, you called me here today because…?" Sakura – because it was indeed Sakura – tried again, her voice more steady as she now sounded more businesslike. He realized his (unintended) rejection must've thrown her off-guard, which explained her uneasiness earlier. Whenever they got down to business, she sounded more professional and relaxed.

"It's…" He hesitated. He had called her all the way down here to ask for her help, but secretly, Sasuke hated doing so. He had even been so desperate that he had asked _Naruto_ – big mistake, the blonde only cackled like a madman and had then told him to do it on his own.

"It's _Konoha Golden Leaf_'s new album. It's supposed to be a surprise, but it should be… _different _this time…" He struggled with the words, trying to find a fitting synonym for what he was about to say; the word 'love song' did not quite exist in Uchiha Sasuke's vocabulary.

"Different? Different how?" wondered Sakura curiously, then blinked disbelievingly at him. "You don't mean _hiphop_, do you?"

Naruto's suggestion of the _Kangstaz_ was still fresh in his mind as Sasuke promptly responded, "Hell no."

The pink-head giggled at the thought of the band rapping on-stage – particularly the thought of Naruto rapping seemed to entertain her, as his 'performing' voice was somewhat reminiscent of a girl's – and then continued; "So, what do you mean then?"

"It's… it's…." Sasuke was not used to stuttering; as a matter of fact, he had never done it before. But the word 'love song' did not sound cool enough in his ears; neither did 'ballade'. Although Sasuke could speak several languages without too much of an effort, he couldn't find more synonyms for the word – at least not any synonyms that sounded cool enough.

Not that Sasuke would admit so. No, he'd rather stutter than say anything like that.

"RnB? Pop? Heavy metal?" Sakura suggested.

"No, it's…"

"Reggae? Classical?" She snapped with her fingers to emphasize that she had realized what it was. "Love songs!"

"… Yes," he breathed out at last, relieved that he had not been forced to say the word.

"Aw, the great Uchiha can't even _say _the word," Sakura teased as she flopped down on the piano stool, her ever-observing green eyes not leaving him; he scowled in response, which caused her to giggle. The interaction made him relax just the slightest in her presence, even if anyone who had seen them just the week before who'd have sworn they were different people.

_Not different people, just the same as before you became different. Even after all these years, she still reads you like an open book, _Naruto's voice whispered with just a mere trace of a taunt as he tried to shut out the sound. It made it so much easier to pretend that it had never happened, even if the event was etched into their memories like a knife carved into wood.

"Hey, I've got an idea," the pink-head spoke up somewhat awkwardly after the strange silence, trying to escape his prying eyes by averting her eyes to the computer in the corner of the room. "It's going to be _perfect._"

Something in her eyes, perhaps the mischievous, evil twinkle, told Sasuke's senses telling him to run for his life before it was too late.

* * *

Sometimes, Ino didn't understand.

There were quite a few occasions when Ino simply didn't _get _it – when she faced a difficult mathematic equation, when she tried to figure out why Britney Spears would be as dumb as to cheat on _Justin Timberlake_ – but they were, or at least she believed them to be, quite normal problems, where people had different opinions or simply were on different levels of intelligence.

But when it came to beauty, she understood quite a lot.

However, she could not simply understand the _beauty_ in living in a monochrome city which looked like it could've been inhabited by robots, consisting of black or white, lifeless and geometrically shaped buildings underneath an ever-grey sky.

"Everyone has different opinions," was all Shikamaru could (lazily) supply concerning this issue. "And the sky isn't always grey."

"I know, but it sounds more poetic. Like emo, somehow. Like the city itself. Anyway, Oto is so _ugly._"

Indeed, the two were currently situated in a café close to Arena 101 – although in a completely different district than the ones Ino usually visited – which didn't look quite as shabby as she had imagined (considering the abandoned factory's layout last time she had met Oto citizens), but it looked extremely _monochrome._

"Well, that's the point of it all," her company responded as he stifled a yawn. "The ones we're waiting for aren't extremely fond of colors."

"Speaking of which, who're we waiting for anyway?" Ino argued as she twirled a blonde curl around her index finger. "I'm getting bored. Do you always wait so long for others to arrive?"

As though right on cue, a girl appeared in the doorway to the almost-empty café, slamming the glass door open so hard it astounded Ino it didn't shatter. She had almost waist-length, coal-black hair pulled back into a strange horsetail which almost allowed her hair to be free except for the very ends of her strands, tied together with a purple tie; she had a camouflage scarf in the colors of grey and black tied around her neck, a matching camouflage skirt, a pale green tank top and a pair of black tights, paired with knee-height combat boots.

She was, much as Shikamaru had described, not very fond of colors.

Her face features surprised Ino; in contrast to her clothing style, it looked cute and sweet, bordering on almost angelic, but there was something in her black eyes speaking of coldness and roughness. She wore an unfitting scowl, and looked like quite the typical rebel. Her eyes scanned the room carelessly when it stopped on their table.

For the fraction of a second, her burning stare almost convinced Ino she'd come crashing over and start insulting her, or worse, fighting with her, but then the most surprising of it all happened.

"_Shikamaru-kun_," an almost whiny, girly voice exclaimed as she indeed came crashing over to the table, flinging her arms around his neck and clinging to it for her dear life.

"Kin," he simply addressed as he sipped his coffee, ignoring Ino's gaping face expression as though this was a daily routine that happened all the time.

"If you'd have told me earlier, I'd have come earlier," she gushed as she lowered her voice into what supposedly was a seductive whisper, leaning closer to his ear as her lips almost brushed his earlobe, "Did you miss me while I was gone?"

"Was I supposed to?" he merely answered blankly.

The girl named Kin pouted. "What, didn't you miss me at _all_? Here I thought you were different, and you turn out to be just another guy."

"I_ am_ just another guy," he replied. "Don't expect too much of me."

She rolled her eyes, and then frowned at the sight of Ino as though she was as dirty as the filth on her shoes. "Who's this girl, Shikamaru-kun?"

"I'm –," she began, her voice loud as her pride was injured, but Shikamaru cut her off, giving her a warning glance;

"This is Yamaki Kisa," he responded calmly as he continued sipping the hot, bitter liquid. "She's a friend of mine."

She had almost blown their cover; to not reveal that she was Sasuke's girlfriend, she had put all her blonde hair into a neat bun, which she covered with a slightly trendy but bizarre white beret, only letting her fringe show; she was dressed rather weirdly, which she had only grudgingly agreed to after Shikamaru had told her just how much Oto girls hated her, and how willing they were to let her suffer.

"A friend _friend_, or a _friend _like me?" Kin indicated with a smirk as she glanced smugly at Ino.

_If only, _she mentally raged as she resisted the urge to narrow her eyes, _if only you knew who I am, bitch, then maybe you wouldn't look like that. I could win your precious little Shikamaru_-kun _over with a wag of my finger._

Then it struck her. She was Sasuke's girlfriend; no time feeling smug about being able to seduce any losers.

(Not that, she had to admit, Shikamaru was like the rest of _them_, but still.)

"Just a plain friend," the aforementioned replied as though he hadn't heard what she had tried to imply.

"Oh, I see." Kin smiled scornfully at Ino with a clearly '_haha, in your face bioootch_'-kind of look. The blonde forced a strained smile onto her lips, doing her best to refrain from killing the Oto girl – although when it came to physical combat, she'd most likely lose. "So, you're here for me right, Shikamaru-_kun_?"

"Actually, I'm here to ask you about the current situation concerning the upcoming month. Does Orochimaru-sama have any plans?"

The girl pouted, leaning closer to Shikamaru just to withdraw, repeating the motion slowly over and over so that her chest slowly rolled against his shoulder – something that, amazingly enough, did not even spawn a reaction. "Oh, you're so mean. That's all you came to talk about?"

"Well, as of now… yes."

She brightened up cheerfully and answered; "I don't really know much about it, but I think there's something planned. Orochimaru-sama doesn't tell me much, although he _definitely _trusts me. To 100 percent."

Ino resisted the urge to roll her eyes. _Yes, definitely, _she remarked sarcastically in the back of her mind.

"Kin, what are you doing?"

The voice that had suddenly barked the question made the three simultaneously jump a little – not as much Shikamaru as the other two. Ino seemed more shocked, whereas Kin almost seemed… frightened?

The unexpected emotion from the other girl made Ino semi-satisfied somehow; she was almost glad to see her that way.

"T-Tayuya-san," Kin stuttered unsurely, withdrawing herself from Shikamaru completely, weaving her fingers together behind her back in a pose quite reminiscent of a foot soldier in front of her superior.

"Kin," the other voice spat in a not all too pleasant tone; the source of the sound had been a girl who was seemingly shorter than Kin, but shockingly eye-attracting. While the voice had been rough and almost hoarse, slightly masculine, the owner of it was nothing like it; the girl named Tayuya had almost waist-length, messy bright red hair and large, hazel eyes, and was rather short.

She wore a similarly monochrome-colored hat, a typical skater's accessory; she also wore a thigh-length beige sleeveless tunic with the stereotypical purple "Oto" ribbon, which showcased her status in The Sound – only high-ranked students were allowed to wear it – and a black t-shirt and black tights underneath. On her feet were knee-length combat boots with a slight heel, complete with tiny purple ribbons adorning the front in a zigzag of shiny silver lines and pastel lilac. On her hands were fingerless, slightly torn black gloves, and she had two rings – one on her ring finger in black with the words 'Sound 5' printed on it, and one in gold on her thumb on her other hand, with 'Oto' and the city's logo of a note on it carved into the metal.

While she couldn't exactly be considered 'attractive' – especially not with her murderous stare – Ino had to admit she was definitely eccentric – in a good way. It was outstandingly attention-craving, but at the same time it somehow fit her without looking exaggerated.

"Tayuya," Shikamaru simply addressed her, as seemed to be the manners for Oto citizens.

"Nara," she acknowledged him, then turned to Kin; "What the fuck do you think you're doing, Kin?"

"I-I'm so s-sorry, Tayuya-san! I-I'll definitely improve, T-Tayuya-san!"

Ino saw a considerable change in the two besides their attitude and affect on each other; Kin's arrogant, girlish façade seemed to have dropped like a hot potato at the sight of the other, whereas Tayuya's vulgar language and almost tomboyish appearance merely made her intimidating.

"You better, shithead," she snarled, narrowing her eyes at the cowering girl, "Orochimaru-sama didn't employ you just to see you slack. Listen here, bitch, if I see you slack one more time, I'm gonna cut your legs and arms clean. And trust me, fuckheads like you are easy to find, so Orochimaru-sama ain't gonna get mad or anything. Just a little 'accident', you know."

She smiled in an almost frighteningly convincing manner – Ino was pretty sure she could accomplish what she had just threatened – and licked her lips. "It's been too long since I last saw someone _bleed_."

Kin gulped. "N-no, I mean y-y-yes, T-Tayuya-san," she murmured and bowed her head. It seemed like she, as well, was rather confident that the girl named Tayuya could 'keep her promises'.

"Good. Now don't open that bladdermouth of yours unless I ask for it. And you," she added in a low growl as she turned to Shikamaru, "what're you doing here?"

"As I previously asked Kin, I was just here to ask about the upcoming situation next month. Any plans?"

She narrowed her chocolate eyes in disapproval as she studied his features for the fraction of a second. Then, turning away abruptly, she snarled, "I don't give a rat's ass about what Orochimaru-sama says to us, I don't trust you, Nara. You might as well be a spy for fucking Konoha, for all I know. Or she is." She threw a dirty glare Ino's way, her eyes seeming to penetrate her very soul – it was as though she was trying to coax Ino into telling the truth.

Ino was assured her heart had jumped right out of its chambers and was on its way up her throat, fighting past the block that had emerged there. Unable to swallow, she was queasy in her stomach, and she felt her pulse rising – her palms were getting sweaty, and the nausea and tension was so thick it made her want to puke. Had she seen right through their plan?

Although Ino wasn't easily scared – sure, she screamed like a banshee when she watched horror movies, but that was just normal – she felt anxiety stream in her veins like venom at the eyecontact. There was something in Tayuya's eyes – immense hatred, and the constant threat of murder, which she most likely was capable of – that frightened her, and her suspicion only made it worse.

_I'm never going to watch a horror movie again,_ she mentally noted and added meekly, _if I survive this._

Shikamaru, however, seemed almost unnervingly calm. "Don't be silly, Tayuya. If I were to be a spy for Konoha, I wouldn't give away so much information about the city, right?"

"You might've fed us false information," she argued, once again (to Ino's relief) setting eyes on him.

"But it turned out to be valid, didn't it?"

She merely growled. The tension had not fully disappeared, but it was not as thick before; the queasiness in Ino's stomach settled a bit, but she could still not believe it. _How does he handle it? How can he lie to someone who's so… scary?_

"Who is she, anyway?" Tayuya changed the subject, once again glaring at Ino – thankfully not for long, as she turned back to Shikamaru in anticipation for an answer.

"Yamaki Kisa. An acquaintance of mine."

Kin, having apparently forgotten her position, snorted. "Didn't you just say 'friend'?" She quickly clasped her hands to her mouth, looking in almost horror at her fellow Sound companion, who did not look quite in the best of moods.

"Didn't I tell you not to open that bladder-mouth of yours unless I asked for it?" she hissed in a manner reminiscent of a snake.

"Y-yes, T-Tayuya-san," Kin muttered, inching slightly away from the red-head.

Without even replying, Tayuya returned to Shikamaru with a scornful smirk. "Hn, I'd like to see Temari's face if she knew you were with her."

"She knows. And does that even matter? I've only a limited time for a visit here, and I want to know; is there anything going on next month or not?"

There was a pause, and then; "What can you offer me?"

"I've no possessions nor information that'd be of any value to you. I only have myself."

She frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He smirked self-consciously and somewhat devilishly – a trait that surprised Ino. "Take it as you want."

Her face turned the shade of her hair, and Kin's eyes widened considerably as she clasped a hand to her mouth to hide her gaping expression. "Fuck you," she snarled aggressively, "as much as I hate that Suna bitch, I'm not gonna be your toy you can play with behind her back."

"I never said that. And even if I'd have liked to, Temari would never need to know," he responded smoothly.

"You sure are a backstabbing bastard, aren't you?" Tayuya instead demanded of him, her eyes narrowing to slits, but a dangerous, almost scornful smile was creeping onto her lips.

He didn't answer at first. Then, "Just tell me where and when I can meet Kabuto to ask him about next month's plans, and I'll get the rest of the information from him myself."

The red-head seemed to struggle with her inner turmoil, and then at last she reluctantly, albeit grudgingly, replied; "His office hours are from eight to six. After six, he mostly goes to _Snake's Eye _to grab a beer."

"Thank you," he merely smirked.

* * *

"A rock song? On the _piano_?" Sasuke inquired, disbelieving.

"Have you _never _heard one?" she wanted to know. "It starts out with the piano and the solo singer, and then when the chorus starts, the drums and the guitars kick in and then the second verse only has the guitar play like at some places, but the drums stay. Kind of like with Rihanna's _Cry_, just that she didn't have guitars or drums – you know what I mean?"

Although Sasuke's face was mostly blank, his eyes stared at her in a manner that strongly suggested the words '_you lost me_'.

"Never mind," Sakura sighed. "But you _do _know how to play the piano, right?"

The answer came automatically. "Yes. Basic chords."

"Right. So you know how to like, pair them up with each other, so that they all stay in harmony, right?"

He snorted indignantly, as though he wanted to say, '_How stupid do you think I am?_'

"Okay, so I'm going to play a couple of rock songs that were converted to piano versions for you, so you kind of get the idea. I think you can do the rest by yourself, really. The lyrics are kind of simple – when you write a love song, think of someone you love. And then, depending on the theme of the song, you can kind of customize the rest on your own."

He nodded, slowly, as though in acceptance of her idea. Sucking in breath to be able to breathe properly

(_even after all that time, she still could not breathe normally around him – it was as though his presence was enough to drain her of the little air she had)_

she gently put her fingers onto the keys of the piano, and pressed them down, playing the beginning of an all-too-familiar melody.

Shutting her eyelids – because she already knew the sheets and keys so well she could play them with her eyes literally closed – she drew breath, and started to sing

(_even if her breathing was still failing her, as though her lungs had been incapacitated with a bullet, and she wanted to cry for help, but her voice was failing her as well)_

like so many times before, but this time she wasn't alone, there was someone else listening, and it was _him_, it was _his _ragged breathing next to her, it was _his _scent drifting into her nostrils due to the close proximity, it was _his _presence

(_and her heart bled, and she felt nauseous and dizzy but clearly awake at the same time, and it made her feel filthy, sick – like a disease she couldn't get rid of)_

_that_ presence, that person which she had longed for, dreamed about, cried for. It was that person she had once hoped would've become hers. Someday.

That person that would never, ever become hers. Not anymore.

"_Got the news today, doctors said I had to stay  
A little bit longer, and I'll be fine…_"

She could hear _his _voice in her mind – even when he wasn't speaking – bittersweet memories welling up like the tears burning behind her eyelids, and she could hear Naruto's voice, desperately joking in a failed attempt to cheer her up,

(_"It doesn't matter, right, Sakura-chan? 'Cause you've still got me – and who needs the bastard when you've got someone like me?_")

in a desperate attempt to replace _him_. It was almost like, ironically, s_he _had become Naruto's disease herself.

* * *

_But you don't know what you got 'til it's gone  
And you don't know what it feels like to be so low…_

* * *

It had always been a given that the most popular girl in school would be the cheerleading squad's captain. She'd date the captain of the school's soccer team, and the hottest jock in their year, and they'd live happily-ever-after and get married and have 2 children and celebrate their 5th anniversary by throwing this old high school reunion. She'd be the princess, and he'd be the prince.

Or something like that.

Ino hoped not to be any different. She already _was _the most popular girl in school – there was no need to be modest about an undeniable truth – being blessed with good looks and strong charisma, not to mention winning everyone's heart over.

She already dated the hottest boy _in town_, even if he quit the position as the soccer team's captain four years ago. She was the best cheerleader in her squad, and it was thanks to her that they were the best in Japan.

But sometimes, she wondered how it'd be to be different. How it'd be not to be that stereotypical, blue-eyed blonde who every girl wants to be, who's thin as a model but has got gorgeous curves, with a clothing style that makes the other girls' styles fade in comparison; how it'd be not to be just Any Other Homecoming Queen.

She convinced herself that it was _that _girl Sasuke had fallen for, _that _girl he liked her for being. But sometimes, in her darkest moments of doubt, she secretly wondered if he could see beyond that stereotypical façade, if it really was that kind of girl he wanted.

So, as she did her twentieth high-kick the same hour, chanting another cheer with her brainless, albeit loyal _followers_, she contemplated what it'd be like to be book-smart, to not be excessively loud or cheerful, but understanding and wise.

What it'd be like being a certain pinkette.

Sometimes, she really, _really _wanted to know whether or not _she _wasn't the princess in the story, but the girl standing in the way for the _real _princess.

Not that she'd ever admit even thinking this. She and Sakura were the best of friends; they had always been and they'd remain so forever. Boys, even if it was _That _Boy, would never come between them; and besides, she was helping Sasuke realize that Ino truly _was _his princess now, wasn't she? It couldn't possibly go wrong.

_No, _she decided determinedly as she raised her pompoms high in the air, _it can't – _won't – _go wrong._

But she still couldn't get rid of that nauseating feeling that crept into her veins like poison.

"Hey, look over there – what is _he _doing there?" a taunting voice demanded half-loudly, and snickers erupted from a number of the cheerleaders, who had stopped doing their routine and were goggling at a poor, shaking and rather large (_notfatnotfatnotfat_) boy in the doorway, awakening Ino from her thoughts.

"He looks _totally _out of place. What's he doing here anyway – measuring his pants size with the biggest doorway in school?"

"Uh-huh. Oh God, he's eating chips. What a pig. Does he have _any _idea how many calories is in that thing?"

She instantly recognized who it was. "Akimichi-kun," she muttered quietly for herself, and then, pretending like she had heard nothing, clapped her hands loudly to catch the other cheerleaders' attention, and shouted; "Okay, girls, we're done for today! Great job!"

The usual chitchat started up again, occasional taunts could be heard as the ever-so-blonde crowd made their way to the changing room, giggling and sneering mockingly at Chouji, who was still cowering in the entrance to the gym. Ino watched as the last cheerleader walked into the changing room, before she approached him.

"Hey, Akimichi-kun," she smiled – triggering a not-so-surprising blush from the boy. "What're you doing here?"

"Th-the project," he spluttered unsurely, then stared downwards at the floor, as though he was not worthy of meeting her gaze. "… I… I'm sorry…"

She stared at him in slight confusion. "What for?"

"Showing up here… I… your reputation…"

Ino waved a hand with luxurious French manicure painted onto her long nails dismissively. "Never mind the cheerleaders. They tend to be like that with whoever's not hanging out with, you know, the jocks or us. So… you've any idea what to do with the group project yet?"

"Yeah, uh… I kind of have an idea," he confessed shyly. She gestured with her hand again to urge him to continue. "Well, um… food. We could write about food."

A delicate frown found its way onto her aristocratic features. "Iruka-sensei wanted us to do a project about different sorts of issues, doesn't he? Issues about people trying to reach expectations of someone, or everyone. Life-changing issues. Food doesn't really… change life."

"But it does," he protested, his cheeks growing hotter as he argued, "It does. Diets and… and anorexia, and stuff. How everyone wants to become thin, and how they starve themselves just to reach the expectations of everyone else."

"… Well, I guess it's true," she admitted at last. "That's a pretty good idea, Akimichi-kun."

He beamed, joyful about the compliment. "Yeah, Shikamaru said so too."

_Shikamaru_. The name triggered the memory from the afternoon, and she found her lips forming the words before she could stop them; "So, Shikamaru really is a ladies' man, isn't he? First that Temari, now those Sound girls…"

Chouji shrugged carelessly, but with a tiny smile; apparently Shikamaru was a topic that made him relax, as opposed to speaking about cheerleaders. "Shikamaru doesn't really care about the Sound girls. He's just manipulating them to get to know more information about Oto."

"… That's mean," she protested, imagining Shikamaru ruthlessly trampling a bunch of hearts piled up in front of him, the Sound girls kneeling in front of him.

Ino sure had a lot of brain-dead cheerleader friends, but that didn't mean she lacked a creative imagination.

"Well, a job is a job," he responded. "Besides, he doesn't really fall for just any kind of girl, especially not Oto ones. He likes calm and nice girls."

"Like Temari?" Ino supplied sarcastically; the blonde wasn't exactly renowned for her sweetness or patience. As word had it, she was a rather feisty and stubborn person, and had a rather strong pride.

"Not exactly. But she's special."

Something about the word 'special' stung Ino like a pointed needle. Fighting her own pride, she reluctantly questioned; "Special how?"

"I don't know, actually. She's… smart, I guess. Like Shikamaru."

"Shikamaru? Smart?" Ino arched an eyebrow. "Why does he flunk so many subjects, then?"

"He's sort of lazy. He always falls asleep during tests. But once, Asuma-sensei did this IQ test on him, and he had 200 in IQ. That was why Tsunade-sama hired him." He paused, then continued, "Where is he, by the way?"

"He's in Oto, he told me to go back since I had cheerleading practice," she replied absently, still shocked concerning the revelation; she spoke up again, wondering, "So, does Temari have 200 in IQ too, or what?"

"Well, I don't know. Shikamaru has never told me, except that she beat him at chess. He's really good at chess," Chouji added, "I've never won against him even once. Tayuya almost did, though – but he says she's too foul-mouthed for his taste."

But Ino had already stopped listening. Something – female instincts? – told her that she already disapproved of this Temari…

"… he's smarter than Sasuke, even –"

Ino opened her mouth to tell him off, to tell him that he was wrong; but something stopped her; at the mention of his name, the feeling of slowly dying out of the pure venom within her veins, the venom which was dirtying her insides, reappeared.

She could only smile, like she had always done, like she'd always do. As long as she could smile, as long as she could be Any Other Homecoming Queen, she'd be sure to get the prince in the end – because they always do.

Little brainy pinkettes would make no difference in this matter. Or so, Ino would like to continue to believe, continue to feed herself the venom that coursed through her blood, continue to feed herself the poisonous taste of doubt.

But she'd wait, she'd patiently wait, patiently keep the Prince, the Jock, close to her, so that one day, he could give her the antidote.

One day.

* * *

_Waitin' on a cure  
But none of them are sure  
A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

* * *

Tsunade liked sake.

In Tsunade's opinion, this was nothing peculiar. A lot of people liked sake; it was just common for Japanese, and even Western people, to favor its grand taste. Besides that, she also liked a lot of other things. She liked gambling, saving people, and gossip, because Konoha's inhabitants were always so unpredictable. And anyway, what was the point of getting a TV if you get to see soap opera-worthy drama live?

"It's still not an excuse to drink sake during office hours, Tsunade-sama," her ever-so-faithful apprentice/subordinate/secretary/servant/slave (the latter three were none the person in question agreed on, but that didn't matter), Shizune, answered.

"Oh, whatever, Shizune, give me a break. I've been here since 4 in the morning just trying to arrange that goddamn school event. Whoever said that Kirigakure's mayor is a nice, kind, loving man should be shot."

"Still, Tsunade-sama, you shouldn't –"

Shizune was briskly cut off by a rapt series of knocks on the door. Tsunade, glad to escape the oncoming lecture, barked; "Come in!"

A certain roseate-haired teen stumbled through the door, almost tripping on a stack of papers messily piled right on top of each other, which was situated close to the doorway. "Good afternoon, Tsunade-shishou, Shizune-san."

"Good afternoon, Sakura," Shizune greeted with a kind smile, whereas Tsunade merely demanded; "What do you want?"

"I was summoned to your office to tell you that Shikamaru is going to run a bit late. Tayuya and Kin refused to tell him about Oto's plans, so he's going to see Kabuto himself in person after six."

"Kabuto, huh…" Tsunade closed her eyes thoughtfully, then, heaving a sigh and flipping them open, she remarked, "Very well. Anyway, I've got some news for you, Sakura."

"Yes, Tsunade-shishou?"

"The school newspaper needs a reportage on the advertisement video in New York this weekend. Besides the fact that it's perfect to spread the news all throughout school and most likely anger Oto, which should trigger a desperation to put their plans into action more swiftly and thus tell Nara, it'll also get Watanabe's father off my back about not promoting her to squad captain when I've told him time and time again I have no interest in such trivial matters."

She paused temporarily, and upon seeing Sakura's arched eyebrow, she continued; "Of course, all expenses will be paid by the school, as this will be a school project. Pack your bags, because you will be leaving tonight."

As Sakura remained motionless, she quickly switched back into her more aggressive state. "Now, what're you waiting for? You're dismissed! Leave!"

Sakura shut the door to the office, before leaning against the cool wall outside, the cold surface making contact with her bare legs, revealed by her scarlet skirt. Whilst the trip to New York filled her with excitement, having to endure yet another weekend seeing Ino and Sasuke together triggered nausea. She had at least hoped that she'd have one weekend alone, just working at the hospital, now that they were both off to the advertisement video…

_Well, I guess fate didn't want it that way, _she pondered, sarcasm evident even in her thoughts.

She could only hope that she'd somehow, someday perhaps meet another person, meet _that _person, _that _Boy, who'd take her with storm, and who'd wipe away any remnants of the bittersweet memories before any of this ever happened, take away all her pain.

_But what if you've already met him? _a taunting voice whispered in the back of her mind. _What if you've already met _that _Boy – just that he's in the arms of someone else?_

Her eyelids slowly rolled upwards, leaving a pair of apple-green orbs naked to the rest of the world to see; a pair of apple-green orbs filled with pain clouded by a layer of desperate hope.

_It doesn't matter, _she convinced herself. _I'll just meet a second one then. Someday._

Someday.

* * *

_All this time goes by  
Still no reason why  
A little bit longer, and I'll be fine_

* * *

"Go," he urged her, his tone just as resentful and disgusted as always, as though he had been speaking to the filthiest lowlife in the world rather than his own daughter.

She stiffened, unsure whether to inquire what he meant. Did he ask her to leave the room, or the country? Or was he encouraging her to actually go on a _road trip_? The latter seemed too unrealistic, so she trashed the idea. Instead, she stood there, stiff and rigid as cardboard, waiting for a further explanation.

She didn't have to wait long. "Neji is your bodyguard. You can't stay here without him, and we're sending Tenten to refresh her Hyuuga fighting abilities in the Hyuuga dojo for a week. Go to New York with him."

"Father…," she spoke up, her voice almost cracking with happiness. It was unbelievable; he was actually giving his approval to let her go to New York with her friends, and even Naruto. A smile started creeping onto her face as Hiashi's own lips pulled upwards into a bitter smirk, as he cut her off;

"Seeing how your prestige is of utter disappointment and shame to the Main family either way, it shouldn't matter too much that you're absent from school and our business a couple of days." A laugh escaped his mouth, but it was hard and cold; it struck Hinata's ears as a pointed, sharp object. "It would be the same with or without you here, as well."

Her face expression froze as all glee disappeared from it in an instant. It was nothing new, yet the hard words were so much harder to digest when she had expected something different – when she had expected it with such frail, paper-thin, but still existent, _hope._

"Or rather," he corrected himself with a sarcasm-filled tone reminiscent of that of an inventor who had just stumbled upon a brilliant idea, "it'd be _better_. You're a nuisance, an eyesore; when I look at you, I wonder how you possibly can be my child. And I'm ashamed of having given a hand in the birthing of something as horrid as you; to think that I'd have ever bestowed something as downright awful as you upon the world… I'm ashamed of myself."

A silence lingered in the air, just as it always did after Hiashi's little speeches; Hinata's hands were clutched into tight fists on her lap as she avoided the pitiful stare of her little sister sitting next to her. She could make out muffled sounds on the other side of the door, where some Branch family members were sitting at the moment; one of the voices sounded slightly like Tenten's. Cheeks ablaze, she was reminded that her friend had not been a witness to Hiashi's harsh words before, and she felt embarrassed for having her experience it, but at the same time thankful that she was not present in the room, probably being restrained by other Branch members to enter it.

"Sometimes I wish you were the child of a Branch family, rather than my own… but then, you'd still bear the name of Hyuuga, and that would still bring shame unto our family, no matter how lowly-ranked you might be in that part of the Hyuuga household."

Silence fell on the other side of the door as well; Hinata tried to block his words out with no success, as Hiashi's brutally icy voice seemed to wreck her focus on other things like a hurricane would do to a stack of hay. She tried to picture Naruto's smile in front of her, but it only made things worse; she felt even more ashamed than ever, as she questioned what Naruto would think of her if he had heard Hiashi speak like this of her.

Because surely Hiashi wasn't saying anything but the truth – only a carefully veiled truth her friends didn't see. If Naruto could see it, then maybe he also –

(_throw me aside, not spare me a glance, and when he does, stare coldly and accusingly at me for even looking at him_)

The mere thought caused her eyes to fill with tears. She pushed them back and lowered her head further, but Hiashi's eyesight did not fail him – he, more than any other Hyuuga Main family member, was particularly perceptive.

"You're _crying_," he stated, voice clearly filled with obvious distaste, as though she had just admitted she was proud of being a teenage prostitute, rather than just shed a tear. "And here I thought you could not possibly get weaker than you already are. You disgust me – you really do. If things continue like this, I might actually free you from your position as an heiress – maybe even dispose of your name as a Hyuuga. Of course, I pray for the impossible to happen and for your improvement – perhaps, at the end of next year, when your birthday comes to an end, you might perhaps astonish me with being able to completely fulfill the requirements needed for our little _agreement _with the Kazekage."

And with those words, he promptly stepped out of the room with the grace and majesty of a royal, shortly followed by the hesitant Hanabi, who gave her older sister a last sorrowful glance before departing as well, leaving Hinata free to finally break down into quiet sobs behind the shut doors.

* * *

_When I thought it'd all been done_

* * *

"How can you just stand by and _watch_?" Tenten shrieked as she flailed with her arms wildly, effectively hitting one of the Branch family teenagers right in his forehead without even noticing. "How can you just – just –"

"Calm down, Tenten," Neji remarked irritably as he pulled her out of the way into the shadows of the house wall nearby so that passersby could walk past; one of the elders gave him a thankful and somewhat apologetic smile. "And you're standing in the way."

"I – don't – care!" she exclaimed, her eyes bulging dangerously as though they were about to pop out of their sockets. "How could you just _listen _to that, without as much as a reaction? Don't you _care _for Hinata at _all_?"

His alabaster orbs turned cold as he replied in a low hiss, "The pride of a Branch family member does not allow me to care for a Main family member – even less for the next leader for them."

"I don't see Hyuuga-senpai hating on Hinata the way you do! As a matter of fact, he seems to be perfectly fine with –"

"Just because some Branch family members are meeker than others, doesn't mean that we all forgive and forget," he intercepted her, his voice tainted with rage. "And also, let me rephrase that last sentence – the pride of the _son_ of Hyuuga Hizashi, namely _me_, does not allow me to care for a Main family member, even less the _daughter_ of Hyuuga Hiashi."

"Look, Neji, I know that you're upset because your dad passed away and I fully understand that, but –"

"_Passed _away? I'd rather say _murdered_," he snarled ferociously.

A tense silence fell as Tenten surveyed him, confusion unveiled in her eyes. "Murdered? I know you hate Hiashi – well, after this, I do, too – with good reason, but isn't that a bit of a heavy accusation?"

"Not as much as an accusation as it is a truth," Neji spat in reply. "Do you know the truth about my parents, Tenten?"

"You never wanted to tell me," she responded in a murmur as she diverted her eyes away from his piercing ones.

"With good reason – I was _forbidden_ to do so. Hiashi-_sama_ refused to let me tell you the truth, as you've always been unpredictable, and you might side with the Branch family and do something drastic, like cause a rebellion or something similar in that manner once you've heard it." He paused as he smiled – but it was a smile of no emotion, other than bitterness – and then continued;

"My mother passed away early, shortly after my birth. Her physical health had always been particularly fragile, so she couldn't handle giving birth. Even though the doctors warned her, she wanted to give birth to me – because she loved me before having ever seen me, and because she loved my father, who she adored and cherished truthfully.

"Despite being the reason to my mother's death, my father treasured me. He loved me, beyond everything else, because I was the offspring of his one true love. He'd tell me everything about my mother, to the point that although I had never seen anything but her picture, I could see her in front of me with perfect clarity.

"Back then, the Branch family and the Main family were at peace – although the Branch family has always been their servants and being despised and humiliated for the sake of their entertainment, my father was grateful to them, and even more to his twin brother, Hiashi-sama, who had put in quite the effort to save my mother.

"When I was 5 years old, the Main family's matriarch – Hinata-sama's mother – fell ill. Although the economy of the Hyuuga household was not the best, Hiashi-sama did everything in order to save her. At the time, Oto and Konoha had a great rivalry, and Oto spies had already injured other Main family members greatly by assaulting and robbing them. Hiashi-sama was afraid that Oto spies would damage his wife fatally if they managed to do the same to her in her fragile state, so he assigned my father – who was _his _bodyguard – to guard her day and night.

"At that time, my father too, was diagnosed with a deadly disease. Hiashi-sama knew of this, but I did not; no information was passed on to me besides the fact that my father was away in the hospital, and that he was doing his duty as a Branch family member. I accepted that fact – we Branch family members have served as the Main family members' bodyguards for years, and for those unlucky weak ones, as their servants and personal jesters. I was proud of him, for doing such a hard task trusted only to the strongest Branch family members.

"I was, on the other hand, aware of the fact that my father's health was decaying. The few times he was at home, he was exhausted to the point that he barely managed to utter a few words before falling asleep. I wanted to know why he didn't receive any treatment, but every time I received the same answer; 'The Main family can't afford it.' But even so, I wondered, how they could afford the treatment of Hiashi-sama's wife?

"My father kept doing his duty, until he one day collapsed. He had died whilst protecting Hiashi-sama's wife – who in the end was never assaulted, and died the same day as my father due to her illness. However, my father would not have a memorial, because Hiashi-sama would not allow us Branch family members to mourn for him.

"One of the Branch family elders finally told me the entire truth – Hiashi-sama had, before falling in love with his now passed away wife, once been in love with my mother. He had never forgiven my father for being the one that married her, and even less forgiven him for my existence."

He fell in silence, as he gazed at Tenten with narrowed eyes intently. "And I, in turn, can never forgive him for taking away the only family I've ever had."

"You're wrong," Tenten spoke up, her eyes and voice soft once again with sorrow. "You have me. You have Hinata – even if you hate Hiashi, she doesn't have anything to do with all of this. And you have Sasuke, Naruto, Kiba, Ino, Sakura – everybody around you. We're your family."

His face expression darkened considerably at the mention of the Hyuuga heiress. "Hinata-sama is not anything remotely close to family for me. She's merely an object in need of protection that I've been assigned to guard."

Tenten frowned in irritation as she added, voice dripping with venomous sarcasm, "Because your _pride_ won't allow it?"

"I would not expect you to understand, as you've never had a true family," he responded coolly. His lips parted from each other once more in order to give way for another icy remark, but Tenten cut across him, agitated;

"I may have never been part of a family, even less the _Hyuuga_ family – which, by the way, I just have to thank God for – so maybe it's none of my business, but I really don't see how Hinata has to do with any of this. I mean, it isn't her fault that her dad is a complete asshole, that her mom was sick or that _your _parents were sick, for that matter."

She took a deep breath as she continued to speedily rant on before Neji could stop her; "All _I_ can see is how _you_ are being a total asshole – oh, wait, a total _emo_ asshole – and can't put aside completely idiotic things like _pride_ and _grudges_ for a true friend, and in this case, someone who's even like your _little sister_ – because you know that she is that to you, Neji, she's not just some stupid frickin' object _in need of protection_! You _care_ for her, but you refuse to even help her when she's in need simply because you hate Hiashi's guts, which, frankly, who doesn't? And because of it, you just stand by while she gets totally shot down by that jerk!"

"You know what, Neji?" The bun-haired girl's hazel eyes narrowed to slits as she glared at her dumb-founded (_ex-_)best friend. "I really thought more of you than that. But right now, you're not much better than Hiashi with all your grudge shit and stupid pride. Have a nice fucking life."

He could only stare, completely stunned, as he watched her retreating back disappear out of sight.

* * *

_when I thought it'd all been said_

* * *

"New York, _baby_! Do you know what this means? We might, you know, meet celebrities and stuff. Like, Biggie and stuff. Did you guys know he's from New York? Maybe he'll sign us a contract or something. Way _kangsta_, dude."

"…"

"Moron."

"Idiot."

"Isn't Biggie dead?" Sakura wondered. "You're talking about Notorious B.I.G., right? I thought he died ten years ago."

"And what the _hell_ is 'kangsta'?" Ino demanded to know.

"Nothing, just Naruto being himself, which naturally means being devoid of any brain activity," Sasuke rasped in a bored tone.

"Hey! You guys are just jealous 'cause I thought of it first," Naruto protested as the rest of the group continued to pass ahead towards the entrance of the airplane. "Hey! Don't just ignore me, dammit!"

Heaving a sigh, he scanned the bright passage in boredom. There were plenty of people passing by – some who ogled at him in astonishment as whispers of '_Konoha's Golden Leaf_' could be heard, causing him to grin – when he suddenly realized he wasn't alone.

"Hinata!" he exclaimed, acknowledging the girl's presence; she jumped slightly, looking up with a startled face expression, then turning the color of a beetroot. "What seat are you in?"

"U-um," she stuttered as she hurriedly greeted the smiling airplane hostess welcoming them to the plane. "12… 12C."

"12C? Awesome, then you're right next to me! I'm in 12D," he beamed as they scuffled along with the stream of passengers towards their seats. He practically threw himself in his seat as he leaned back, exhaling in comfort, whereas Hinata neatly seated herself next to him with such carefulness that it was almost as she was afraid of damaging the chair.

The blonde scrutinized her briefly; he had never quite noticed Hinata before. She was very plain-looking in his opinion – besides her almost iris-less, chalk-white eyes, which were only the slightest shade of light purple. Her hair was chest-length, straight and boasted a fringe that almost reached her eyes; it was raven-colored, which was a contrast to her almost translucent, pale skin.

It was then that he noticed something. "Your eyes look puffy," he commented thoughtfully. "Have you been crying?"

She jumped once again, her head snatching out of its position – lowered, as she stared down at the floor – looking clearly taken by surprise once again. _She's weird_, he concluded. "U-um… n-no," she replied swiftly, almost _too _fast. "I just… I'm sl-slightly a-allergic… that's all."

"Oh. Okay," he replied with a shrug, although he didn't quite believe her. "Well, uh, you can always talk to me if there's something wrong."

"… Thanks," Hinata answered gratefully, her lips quirking upwards into a sincere, albeit shy smile. _Huh. I guess she _can _be cute_.

"So… are you looking forward to New York?" he promptly changed the subject, before the awkward tension could thicken further.

"Y-yes, I haven't b-been th-there before… a-and you d-definitely se-seem excited ab-about it, Naruto-k-kun…"

Her smile widened as he grinned in response; "Of course! I'm not like the bores over there -," he threw a glance of obvious disapproval at the rest of the group; Kiba and Kakashi sat together by the window on the opposite end of their row, Sasuke and Sakura in the middle; in front of Kiba and Kakashi were Neji and Ino, which caused Hinata to laugh slightly. "- who don't seem happy to go at all. I mean, it's New York! You know? I've always wanted to go there!"

"Th-that's great, N-Naruto-kun. Wh-what do you want t-to do once w-we're th-there?"

"A ton of stuff! Like eating and going to see sightseeing stuff and – oh, you know what'd be cool? I'd love to, you know, tour America. That'd be so great! And…"

Hinata's eyes gazed into his, which were literally sparkling with enthusiasm; her smile widened just a fraction as she continued to listen to his voice, to his wants and dreams. And in that moment of utter bliss, when his heart had surfaced before her, perfectly out of reach, but still _there,_ she decided it was worth Hiashi's rage just for this moment.

(_and forever and forever and forever, but she would not, _could_ not, ask too much, because his heart belonged to another_)

Just for this one moment.

* * *

_a little bit longer and I'll be fine_

* * *

Kiba eyed the pale-eyed heiress; she seemed content – no, _happy_. When she had first arrived, she had seemed so consumed by her thoughts – or probably the aftermath of Hiashi's wrath – that he had been worrying about her up until now.

With a slight stinging sensation in his chest, he realized that while she had not reacted to his tries to cheer her up at all, it seemed like once Naruto opened his mouth and started babbling, she seemed completely cured of all her problems.

"Love-sick?" the silver-haired man beside him questioned, as he did not tear his eyes away from the pages in his little orange book, the second volume of _Icha Icha Paradise_.

"What? No!" he protested wildly. "I'm just thinking about New York –"

His little speech was cut short as he eyed the half-open bag seated between his and Kakashi's feet. Eyes wide open, he realized what the contents were, and with a mighty dive, he reached for the heavenly item he had been trying to get ahold of for months –

- just to have Kakashi snatch it away at an impressive speed.

"Gimme those," Kiba demanded, his eyes unfocused as he stared longingly at the stacks of _Icha Icha Paradise_, as well as a couple of _Playboy_ issues, before him in the Holy Bag of Porn.

"No," Kakashi stated matter-of-factly as his gaze still did not leave the pages in which he had indulged with such enthusiasm.

"At least give me the one you're reading right now when you're finished!" he wailed as his calloused fingers reached for the precious object.

"_Never_," Kakashi hissed as he withdrew immediately, leaning towards the window as he glared at Kiba. "Not after you destroyed my last one."

"Destroyed?" he yelped. "I just ripped the bottom of a page, and there wasn't even any text there! C'mon, man, it was an accident!"

"_You_," he snarled viciously as an animal would to another who was invading his territory as he showed his bare teeth in a stunning impression of an angered puma, "destroyed _my_ book. _My _precious book. _My prreeccious._"

"Hello, would you like to have some nuts?" the flight attendant spoke up beside them; at an incredulous speed, Kakashi returned to his original position, the bag tucked underneath his feet out of reach as he smiled charmingly back at her.

"Thank you, that'd be wonderful," he responded in a low baritone voice which summoned a blush on her cheeks; she mumbled something about 'special guest' as she shoved five whole packages of nuts into (the gaping) Kiba's hands and continued to roll her cart down the aisle, her cheeks ablaze as a series of giggles escaped her mouth.

"Dude," the dog-boy said in wonder as he turned to Kakashi in amazement, "You're so my idol."

* * *

_so I'll wait 'til kingdom come_

* * *

"Well, don't you look like little Miss Ray of Sunshine, fresh from _Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland_. So, tell me, Funshine Bear, what's bothering you today? Did you run out of your favorite kind of _Herbal Essences_ shampoo?"

Hyuuga Neji had never been one of the "funny" guys.

As a matter of fact, Ino mused, as she watched his face distorted into a grimace of pure irritation, she had never seen him to laugh during the many years she had known him.

If he found something amusing, he'd adorn his face with one of his arrogant smirks – not very unlike Sasuke – but even when compared to the 'brooding' member of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, Neji was still the ever-so-serious one. At least Sasuke was sarcastic – but Neji seldom spoke at all, if he didn't find it necessary.

Either way, Sasuke mostly shared his opinion concerning most matters anyway, so he didn't _have _to speak.

But even so, the blonde super-model whined inwardly, he can at least just do something else besides just glaring at people.

"You know, I think you've perfectly coordinated face expressions," she thought aloud as she tapped her left forefinger against her chin in mock thoughtfulness, "like, you only have a number of face expressions you can actually _do_, so you've trained them to show at the right time."

As his glare and frown deepened in level, Ino grinned, "See?"

"What do you want, Yamanaka?" he growled through gritted teeth, having abandoned his usual stony façade.

"Well, you know," she answered with polite disinterest as though they were speaking about the weather, "just see what's wrong in Nejiland. Always wondered to take a look in the Land of all Hair Products and Broodiness, just see what it's like. Now seems like a perfect chance for you and I to create the perfect little bond and become the best of buddies in the world. Hey, can I braid your hair when we become best friends?"

"If you intend to keep on spouting utter nonsense, I've no interest in speaking with you," he spat in response, which caused Ino to drop her finger and look at him with an arched eyebrow.

"Relax, I was just kidding. What's got your panties in a twist, anyway?"

"That is absolutely none of your business," Neji retorted frostily.

"Hmm… it's Tenten, isn't it?" she questioned. The reaction was immediate; Neji jerked in his seat, staring at her in sheer disbelief. "Wow, I'm good at this."

"How did you know?" he sputtered.

The blonde shrugged apathetically. "Just a wild guess, but you're totally transparent anyway. It's either got to be that, Hinata, your hair or your martial arts. So, now when I know the root of the problem, what _is_ it that makes your totally_ L'Oréal Artec Kiwi Smoothing Masque 4.2_-ed hair curl itself?"

"How that is any of your concern is beyond me," the Hyuuga prodigy snapped, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, considering how you look like somebody just threw all your favorite hair products into a bonfire, you might not do very well on the photo shoot, and then Ami is going to be up my ass during the rest of the year whining about how I destroyed the ad for her company. Besides that, Tenten is my friend, and I'm a girl – and, also, self-proclaimed but _entirely truthfully_ a love expert, so maybe I can help."

"It isn't -," he began, but was interrupted brusquely by Ino again as she dismissed him with an impatient wave of his hand.

"- like that, yeah, yeah, I've heard that story before. So what's the matter anyway?"

"You women are troublesome," he replied, irritation evident in his tone. "Getting worked up about nothing. It is like your feelings are out of your control – all kinds of feelings. Excitement, curiosity… anger, as well."

"She's mad at you?" Ino's baby-blue eyes sparkled with glee. This gossip was going to be _juicy__**. **_"What did you do?"

"Absolutely nothing," he barked waspishly. "She seemed disturbed by my, in her opinion, lack of pathetic sensitiveness, and I, in turn, defended myself, as one naturally would –"

"Wait, she said you were _insensitive_? And you _reacted_ to that?" Ino's eyebrow traveled farther up her forehead. "Wow, it'd be like me reacting to somebody calling me a fashion-lover."

"That was not the matter," said Neji, apparently infuriated by her remark, "I was merely explaining myself. Apparently, that explanation was not enough to amend for what I had done."

"And what have you done?" she inquired, trying to stifle her bubbling curiosity.

"That is of no importance. The problem at hand is not what I did, but what I _should _do."

"Apologize, obviously."

"Yes, because I harbor the power to jump out of this airplane and successfully develop wings to fly back to Japan, even more specifically to wherever she's training martial arts as of this moment," he remarked sarcastically.

Ino returned his glare as she commented slowly, as though she was talking to a child, "No, but you can leave a message on the phone once we get to New York. By then, she might've calmed down, and maybe you can think through what she said. Maybe she said that for a reason, you know."

"I thought you said you were an expert; is that the best idea you could think of?"

"You won't tell me any specific details, so yeah, that was the best idea I could come up with. Besides, I said I was a _love_ expert… or does that imply you've got something going on with Tenten?" she drawled suggestively, a sparkle of mischief appearing in her eyes.

"She's strictly a colleague and close acquaintance," he argued as Ino promptly ignored him by smiling at the air hostess who had handed her a tray of food, loaded with a plate of lasagna, fruit salad and a piece of pineapple cake. "I only want to amend the damage done by our argument for the sake of business relations."

Ino rolled her eyes as she picked up her fork, discarding the plastic lid of the tiny bowl of fruit salad. "Yes, _of course_ it's only for the sake of business relations."

"Simply because you have Uchiha does not mean that we all are looking for _love_," he added defensively and with disgust at the last word, as though it pained him to even speak the word.

"Yeah," she responded absent-mindedly as she poked at a piece of pineapple in the salad, "I have got Sasuke-kun."

* * *

_all the high and lows will be gone_

* * *

Kiba watched warily as the silver-haired man beside him snored slightly, his mouth slightly open as the outlines of his lips could be seen through the white surgical mask. He tentatively reached out his hand, waving it in front of Kakashi's face; it spawned no reaction from the sleeping manager of _Konoha's Golden Leaf._

With a sneer of triumph, he slowly lowered his hand towards the bright orange book still welded in Kakashi's hands –

"Aaaaaaggh!" Kakashi screamed like a banshee, his eyes bulging as he promptly karate-chopped Kiba in the head repetitively, looking very much psychotic as he did so. "NOO! DON'T TOUCH _**MY **__PRECIOUSSSSS_!"

"Is there a problem here?" the anxious voice of an air-hostess could be heard from Kiba's side as Kakashi's hand immediately started petting his head, ruffling his hair slightly as he grinned, slightly seductively but ever-so-politely, at the woman before them.

"Oh, he's just having nightmares," he convinced her, his voice filled with warmth as he surveyed Kiba with caring eyes. "I'm trying to make him calm down… you know youths these days, they watch too many horror movies."

"Oh, I s-s-see," she stuttered as she flushed a shade of bright crimson, which was visible even in the half-darkness of the plane with a majority of the passengers being asleep (or for those in the proximity of Kiba and Kakashi, no longer asleep). "U-um… I hope you sl-sleep well…"

And she hurried off, giggling to the other flight attendants.

"Dude," Kiba spoke up again as he stared at Kakashi, incredulous. "Did you just tell her I was scared of Gollum from _Lord of the Rings_?"

* * *

_And everytime you laugh, you smile, you glow  
You don't even know, no, no_

* * *

"… _a little bit longer, and I'll be fine,_" the voice of one of the Jonas Brothers chorused into Sasuke's ear. Grimacing slightly, he forced himself to listen to the rest of the song Sakura had sung previously; he hated Jonas Brothers with an avid passion, refusing to acknowledge it as "rock music"

(_but somehow, when _she _was the one singing the words of their song, it seemed less of a damage to his eardrums_)

but for the sake of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, he'd have to endure the torture.

He turned the bright-pink iPod nano in his hands over, the smooth surface cool to the touch. He bristled as a memory of two teenagers sitting in the rain sharing a set of earphones, going through a stack of borrowed CDs while fighting over the Sony Walkman appeared before him with painful clarity.

(_because this memory is no longer supposed to exist)_

Sasuke shook his head, as though the memory itself would disappear if he simply shook it off. His eyes flitted to one side to see if his companion for the flight had noticed anything – but Sakura had fallen asleep. He contemplated her amazing ability to be able to sleep through Kiba's and Kakashi's screeching, or Naruto's loud babbling with the Hyuuga heiress, but she seemed to have no trouble whatsoever erasing her surroundings in order to drift away to her inner haven.

(_unlike him, who couldn't erase anything at all)_

"_You're not a friend or anything to me._"

He repeated the words he had spoken such a long time ago in his mind, chanting them as though they were his personal mantra needed for survival. He couldn't simply forget _everything_ – but he'd forget everything about _her,_ and just keep that one, brutal memory left behind in order to create the barrier between them. The distance, the _wall_ that kept him safe from _her._

And he would never forgive.

He had so defiantly kept the promise he had made to himself all those years, and just with a couple of words, just by her presence, she had broken it.

"_Sasuke-kun… could you do me a favor_?"

He clenched his fists in frustration, gritting his teeth as fury coursed through his veins like venom, when, in the midst of what Naruto referred to as his "Sasuke-ing" – a made-up verb he had described as "just simply being the world-hating emo Sasuke is" – he felt a sudden weight on his shoulder.

Alarmed, Sasuke's onyx orbs dashed to his side once more, to see the sleeping pinkette leaning her head on his shoulder. A drifting wave of the fragrance of shampoo hit him; notes of citrus, jasmine and other traits he could not distinguish trickled into his nostrils as they strangely put him to ease; familiar scents that had once meant something to him.

He eyed her peaceful face; now that she was unconscious, she seemed so less stressed, so much less _tense_ around him.

_Almost like before._

Sasuke ignored the words he had been unable to suppress; taking in her features carefully – her shut eyelids, with just the thinnest line of eyeliner on them and a barely existent layer of mascara adorning the eyelashes, her petite nose, her somewhat thin lips which, at such proximity, held the slight odor of cherry –

His eyes traveled upwards again, surveying the forehead she had once been teased for. A strand of roseate hair was hanging halfway across it, slightly poking her in the nose; something that she apparently had noticed herself, as she shifted uncomfortably in an attempt to get rid of it.

His own fingers reached to pull away the strand when she whispered a name.

"Naruto…"

Freezing solid, his digits held the strand in midair right above her eyelid as he registered what she had just said.

Naruto. _Naruto_.

The name of the oxymoronic blonde that was the guitarist in their band, his roommate, his _best friend_, echoed in his mind like a scream would in an empty room.

The name of her _boyfriend_.

_She's with him now. And you're with _her.

He glanced at the seat upfront in which Ino was now fast asleep, and _her _words haunted him, each syllable ringing with crystal clarity as they repeated themselves in his mind.

"_You're her Prince Charming. Her… her first love. You're her only hope left. Please, if you won't do it for me… do it for _her."

_Yes_, he reminded himself, _I'm doing it for her_.

Somehow, the realization seemed surreal, as though he was speaking of another person in a faraway place that was not _here_. As though he was speaking of feelings that were not _his_.

But somehow, this did not feel like an epiphany. It felt like a revelation of a disease.

A disease that _was _his. His and his only.

And as the last lights of the airplane were turned out as well (Kakashi and Kiba had been asked not to make anymore strange loud quotes from _Lord of the Rings_), Sasuke quietly murmured for himself, "_A little bit longer, and I'll be…fine..._"

* * *

Okay, I hope that wasn't quite as horrible as I think it was.

I'm so, SO sorry for the late update!!! I've been having Writer's Block for quite some time, as you might've noticed. Then my sister completely wrecked my USB, and my dad wrecked my saved files, so... yeah. This was ALMOST completely from scratch, with just the slightest trace of the original chapter in it. I hope it was okay anyway, though.

Here's finally your serving of a little SasuSaku! And KibaIcha. Yeah, he's a pervert in this fic. I know Kakashi is a bit OOC, but hey, I meant for it to be like that.

So, freshman year's over in a couple of weeks. It's been... well, dramatic. I sure miss junior high, though...

Also, I've written a new fic called Green Tea, for those who don't know. It's ShikaIno and right now I guess it's not the most dramatic fic ever, but I'd like it if you just checked it out.

And if you'd like to check out the piano cover of _A Little Bit Longer_ that inspired me, check out ryannarciso's piano cover of the song on YouTube!

Please leave a review and I love you!!! I can't thank you enough for all the reviews, reading them makes me so happy, you've no idea!! So keep on feeding reviews to the review cookie monster... please? n.n

* * *


	7. o6: the dream

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Naruto, duh. Neither do I own Teletubbies or the song "Almost" by Tamia. The dresses in this chapter also exist in real life - they're from the Versace spring/summer fashion catalogue on their website (just in other colors/patterns that I've mentioned). Also, credit goes to the hairstylists of Jessica Alba and Cameron Diaz, who inspired me regarding Ino's and Sakura's hairstyles. And oh, I don't own The Plaza (NY)... sadly.**

* * *

Do you believe in dreams?

I used to. To be entirely honest, I still do.

(_"'Fragile, handle with care'? What's _in _that_?_"_)

Dreams are so breakable – so paper-thin, and can be blown away so easily with the wind of time.

(_"That's my box of dreams!")_

They're just like memories – and still, so different. Because dreams aren't real – but memories are.

(_"You write down what you dream at night?")_

There's just a thin line between a dream and reality.

(_"No, silly, I write down my dreams of the _future!_")_

So, I just wonder,

(_"Am I in it?")_

where do I go

(_"Am I in your future, Sakura?")_

to be able to cross that line?

* * *

**o6.**

New York had always been a dream to Sakura.

The city of wonders – the city that never slept – filled to the brim with so many sights, everything from culture to fashion to just the city and its inhabitants themselves had made it an incredible daydream out of her reach.

It wasn't as though she was unable to afford the expenses required in order to travel the city of glamour, but she had simply never found the time, occasion, or the companions to do such with.

However, no matter how much Sakura treasured her so-called friends, she had never been much of a morning person, and spending it with her friends wouldn't be what she'd label as the most flawless way to begin one's day.

"Sakura-chyaaan! What're you going to eat? There's so much good stuff here I just can't settle for one –"

Having spent far too much time being alone in the mornings, she had gotten accustomed to peaceful silence; the silence being further appreciated when it was, like this particular day, accompanied by a throbbing headache.

"- and I don't even know what half of the things here is. I mean, who names food 'foie gras' anyway?"

Even being present in New York, in such a place as _The Plaza_, to enjoy – as little enjoyment as it was to have Naruto's voice split her head further like a knife through melting butter – a brunch, didn't overshadow the fact that she was utterly on the verge of screaming _bloody murder_.

"Naruto, you might wanna shut up. Do you see how she's grasping her knife? I think she's gonna kill someone, and I don't wanna be the victim."

"No, Sakura-chan wouldn't kill me, would you? 'Cause she just loves me _too much_," the blonde in question drawled as he threw an arm around Sakura's shoulders, ignoring the barely noticeable flinch Sasuke summoned as he did so.

"If you keep provoking her like that, I think she's gonna," Kiba retorted as his eyes didn't leave the menu. "And we can all pray that she does."

"Naaaaaah! Sakura-chan would never do that. Anyway, Sakura-chan, what do you think sounds better – crab cake roll or Belgian waffles? I mean, you can get crab cake rolls in Japan, but I sure wanna try New York's crab cake rolls…"

"Man, are they for real?" the dog-loving second guitarist of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ exclaimed. "Hearts of Romaine Caesar salad? Tomato and fennel soup? Do they wanna starve us to death or what? It ain't food if there's no meat in it!"

Sakura suppressed a growl as her fist clenched around the knife, considering what'd be the best way to kill both loudmouths off without having to pay for blood stains on the gold-colored carpet, which probably exceeded the expenses of a year's residency in her apartment.

"Hey, they've got sashimi!" Naruto burst out, azure eyes sparkling with excitement. "I wanna try that!"

"But it ain't _meat_," whined Kiba, misery evident in his voice.

_Screw that_, she corrected herself mentally, the blood stains would be worth getting rid of her headache, which had now advanced into a pain similar to that if one had piled the Empire State Building on top of her head and have the entire of New York's inhabitants practicing step-dance simultaneously on top of it.

"Shut up, morons," Sasuke interjected the two's heated verbal brawl about what'd taste better out of griddle cakes and Belgian waffles, "Not all of us are interested in your tiny dilemma of what you're going to _eat_."

"Yeah, if you can't decide, you can just order as much as you want," Ino threw in with her usual charming smile, "Ami is paying the bill, you know."

"Well, you should've said it earlier," Naruto grinned impishly, as he shouted to the waiter, "Misteeer! I'd like to have the weird fuaaiee grass thingie, a crab cake roll, Belgian waffles, griddle cakes, cheese omelet bar, and the Oak Bar Dry Aged Prime Burger, pleaaase!"

"Naruto, don't shout in a restaurant," the other blonde of the table scolded him. "We're not at Ichiraku, we're in the Oak Room at _The Plaza_."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he dismissed her with a trained wave of the hand, as one would dismiss an annoying fly.

As the two blondes engaged in a fiery argument about table manners, Sakura gazed gratefully at Sasuke across the ivory table sheets for having soothed her Headache From Hell, if not entirely then at least a little; however, the latter did not react at all as their eyes met; face devoid of emotion per usual, he only proceeded to take a sip from his cup of black coffee.

"Thank you," she mouthed as he merely shrugged in response, apathetic while consuming his serving of smoked salmon benedict with miso hollandaise.

Sakura swiftly retracted the smile that had been fighting to conquer her lips; letting her mind wander, she reveled in the relaxed atmosphere she had been wanting to acquire for months – ever since her "tutoring" with Sasuke had begun, the two's tension seemed to have lessened incredibly, especially after having spent a total of fifteen hours on a flight next to each other (albeit she had been asleep throughout a little less than half of that time).

_Just being able to be here_, she pondered, as she surveyed her surroundings, trying to absorb every detail; the smooth wooden walls of the Oak Room; the high, butter-colored ceiling; the comfortable armchairs in snowy white with forest-green stripes; the heavenly taste of the gourmet food she was indulging in and furthermore, her _**company**_–_ with them…_ _is like a dream itself._

"I don't understand how Sakura puts up with a boyfriend like you," Ino's voice snappishly tore her away from her reverie, "I mean, where do you go on dates? Ichiraku?"

"Yeah, so what?" Naruto countered in defense. "Just 'cause you and Sasuke-teme are trying to play rich kids and only go to fancy restaurants, doesn't mean we all do!"

"Well, at least _my_ Sasuke-kun is classy," retorted the other blonde, her voice a purr as she curled her French-manicured fingers around the arm of the aforementioned sitting next to her; "aren't you, Sasuke-kun?"

A surge of pain rushed through the pinkette's body as she watched her grasp around his arm tighten slightly, with more confidence, leaning towards his shoulder, as he merely responded with his trademark sound, "hn", and a smirk displaying his usual arrogance.

_It shouldn't hurt anymore_, she told herself as though it was more of a personal mantra than it was a statement, _you should be used to it now. They're boyfriend and girlfriend – and you're helping them remain like that. Get used to it, Sakura._

Naruto shot a brief glance at his "girlfriend" sitting opposite the cuddling couple, anxiety only apparent to one that would watch his movements closely; then turned back to them with a mere roll of his eyes. "Classy, or just being a snob?"

"You wouldn't be able to know class anyway, dobe," the Uchiha drawled, "even if it so were to walk right up to you and smack you twice in the face."

"Bastard," he growled in reply as Ino's voice cut off his coming insult gleefully;

"Hey, I've got an idea! Now that you're dating Sakura, and I'm dating Sasuke-kun, we can all go on a double-date! And then we can see who're the _classiest _ones."

The uncomfortable silence that lingered in the air tickled Sakura's nerves with exceedingly little gentleness as she could feel her posture go rigid; ignoring the piercing onyx-eyed stare directed at her across the table, she merely proceeded to hold her gaze steadfastly at the surface of her cup of green tea placed in front of her.

The reactions of the other occupants of the table did not differ all too much from hers; Naruto's gaze, like Sasuke's, was also placed unto Sakura, although his was much more decipherable as the concern and anxiety was further enhanced by his sharp baby-blue eyes. Even Kiba, who had silenced prior to Ino's suggestion due to his excessive eating, put down his fork as his eyes were set on the pinkette, prying for her answer.

Only Ino seemed unaware of the sudden atmosphere change – per usual, as she had never been much of a sensitive person to begin with, akin to Naruto – as she gulped down some Diet Coke, until her eyes, too, settled on Sakura.

Against her will, the latter had been pushed out into the spotlight on a stage she had not asked for, whilst the audience waited for her coming performance, one of the many that she had been forced to face unprepared.

And so, she decided to flee. Flee the spotlight in which she didn't belong. "Hey, that sounds like a great idea," she said with an enthusiasm that was not her own, "maybe we can do it when we get back to Tokyo. And now, _I_'ve to get back to my room… I think I've to prepare writing the article for The Academy News, you know?"

"Yeah, about that…," Ino trailed off as she ingested a spoonful of her baby greens salad, then continued; "you're going to participate in the ad video, too. With Naruto. And I'm going to be with Sasuke. The four of us together, isn't that great?"

"Totally," she agreed with forced cheeriness as she proceeded towards the exit of the Oak Room. "But now I've definitely got to prepare. See you later!"

As her feet carried her farther and farther away, she could feel the strangling hold of her heart lessen; but in turn, she realized two things; that her headache had worsened tenfold, and that her heart was no longer present with her.

It was as though a vacuum had surfaced in her chest, and the sight of the happy couple together, which really _should _have stimulated a warmth and joy for her best friend's happiness, instead only summoned an aching pain in a heart long gone.

A heart she had left behind with her best friend's boyfriend.

* * *

_How could we celebrate a love that's too late,  
and how could I really mean the words I'm about to say_

* * *

Dreaming, Neji concluded, was a leisure activity for utter fools.

He was further convinced of the truth in his argument as he threw a disapproving glance at the Hyuuga heiress seated on the luxurious alabaster sheets on the unfathomably soft king bed – the only bed in the 550 square feet guestroom known as the Signature Room they had temporarily occupied – who was adorning a face expression of utter melancholy.

_Probably just thinking about how Uzumaki is with Haruno__ now again_, he mused, a frown forming on his face at the revolting thought.

He was completely assured that this was the reason why she had skipped breakfast – either that, or she was still upset about Hiashi's lecture the previous night – a lecture that, in Neji's opinion, she deserved – at least if she was going to be moping around because of it.

_How vulnerable_, he inwardly jeered; even for a woman, she was particularly weak. Both mentally and physically, which was proven provided how often she was in need of protection. He protected her physically, making sure she was always safe from danger; but Kiba always worried for her state of mind, always enliving her when she seemed to be unhappy.

He was amazed that it was already 10 in the morning, and yet the annoying aforementioned member of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ had yet to appear at the door to check in on her.

As though right on cue, a series of rapt knocks could be heard against the door. _Speaking of the devil_, Neji thought as he rolled his eyes, opening the door with his ever-so-apathetic face expression. Without even greeting his fellow band member, Kiba stepped right into the room, surveying it open-mouthed.

"Whoa," he exhaled as he walked to the center of the large guestroom, scanning his surroundings with wonder as he ran a finger on the rich fabric of the gold-colored armchair. "And here I thought _my _room was a treat. You guys sure know how to do it, huh?"

No response followed after his comment, as Kiba glanced at Hinata with a wide grin and a wave; the latter mumbled a feeble reply, still sitting on the king-size bed with her hands interlaced in her lap, her posture straight and far from relaxed.

"Why is there only one bed?" he mused aloud, and then ogled at pearl-eyed boy in sheer surprise and looking slightly disturbed, "You guys don't actually _share _it, do you?"

"Of course not," said Neji, impatience apparent in his voice; he was not in the mood to entertain, in his opinion, a dimwit with the brain capacity of an ant. "I'm her bodyguard; I stay in the armchair."

"Huh. That's uncomfortable." His head pivoted back to Hinata, who had yet to utter a sound. "So, why didn't you come eat with us? The food was delicious, y'know."

"Hinata-sama suffers from a lack of appetite," Neji supplied in lieu of her answer, "most probably due to a case of jet lag."

"Or," Kiba reciprocated in a low tone that further enhanced his baritone voice, "from a case of Hiashi."

Silence fell as his hazel eyes probed her milk-colored ones for a confirmation of his statement, but as none was found, he merely heaved a sigh. Scratching his head, he turned back to Neji. "Hey, do you mind if I just take Hinata out for a bit? I think she needs some fresh air."

"She can get all the fresh air she wants by opening the window – or just sitting on the terrace, for that matter," he retorted in a tone that warned Kiba not to push the subject further.

However, whether this warning escaped Kiba's ears or he had merely chosen to ignore it remains an unsolved mystery as he wrinkled his delicate nose. "You know what I mean, Neji. C'mon, man, just for a little while."

"We are to assemble at the studio at noon. I will not tolerate you being late."

"First of all, that's in two hours," Kiba argued, the veil of his little patience running out being almost completely uplifted, "and secondly, we're not even supposed to have the photo shoot before at least 2 p.m. It's only Naruto and the others who're supposed to be in the video who've to be there at noon."

"Watanabe-san promptly informed us not to be late, and to be gathered in the studio at noon."

"Oh, c'mon, what's the point in being there four hours before we actually have to _do_ something? And even if we've to be there at noon, there's another two hours until _then_."

"I will simply not allow your request. If you wish, you can stay here on the terrace with Hinata-sama, if the need of fresh air is urgent."

"Don't be such an asshole," the dog-lover threw back at him through gritted teeth, irritation now transparent. "She's always locked up at the Hyuuga mansion, and even when she's out, you're watching her like a shadow in Japan. At least here in New York, less people know her name. She's safer – and she's always got me. It's broad daylight, and it's not like we go here every weekend together. C'mon, get that sympathy feeling rocking underneath that ice-block surface of yours and let her go out with me for _just a little while_. Please?"

Neji's eyebrows furrowed further, as he snapped; "Sympathy is for weaklings."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "Sympathy is for _humans_," he retorted waspishly, "unless you've forgotten, not _all _of us are emotionless robots."

"It is not my wish that you put _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s future at stake for the sake of _sympathy_, Inuzuka. If this advertisement turns out to be a failure, it'll also put the Hyuuga family in bad light."

"Yes, because the Hyuuga family was in such a _wonderful _light before," he snarled ferociously, now looking more feline than ever. "Tell me, how's Hiashi-_sama_ doing these days?"

A threatening glare was directed in the speaker's direction, as the tension in the atmosphere thickened further. "Perhaps it is too much for an oxymoronic airhead like you, Inuzuka, for you to completely grasp the full extent of the pride of the Hyuugas –"

"I don't give a rat's ass about the pride of the Hyuugas," he growled. "Just let her out of here."

"Maybe you should give a rat's ass when I let _you _out of here."

"What're you trying to tell me?" Kiba laughed tauntingly. "That you're going to _throw me _out of here?"

"Maybe I am."

"Oh, really? You want to give it a try?"

The two simultaneously took a step towards each other, Kiba's fang-like teeth displayed in what could easily have been mistaken as a distortion of a grin, Neji's eyebrows almost uniting as his milk-colored eyes were narrowed to mere slits. However, as they both leaned backwards slightly to prepare for the other to spring, the voice of a certain heiress, and the reason for the almost-brawl, could be heard.

"Stop," Hinata spoke up at last, barely audible, but still as clear as crystal in the ringing silence of the room; the anxiety in her voice was impossible to pass by unnoticed. "Kiba-kun… Neji-onii-san… stop. Please."

"Don't meddle in this, Hinata-sama," Neji snarled, his gaze not leaving his opponent even for the fraction of a second; he caught sight and analyzed his every movement, trying to predict his next one.

Kiba, on the other hand, hesitated.

His eyes instantly fluttered away from Neji, dashing towards Hinata's face, which was scrunched up in obvious discomfort; he followed the outlines of the petite frown of fear she had formed; her almond-shaped, nude lips quivering only the slightest, and then his own eyes traveled upwards to meet hers.

The moment they locked, he could see nothing else but her panic about their upcoming brawl; her fear of the both of them getting hurt; the guilt for being the one to cause it, and furthermore… the anxiety and sorrow reflected in the almost iris-less orbs.

And it was like for just the mere fraction of a moment, the frontiers of their worlds met with each other, and a portal was opened. He could see _her_ world – and it absorbed him to the very extent that he could see nothing else but it.

So, he made a decision. For his own sake, because he was doing something for _her_, and that equaled selfishness.

Selfishness because he wasn't supposed to be the one to try to conquer her heart. He shouldn't even attempt the foolish action at all… because he'd never succeed.

But he'd still foolishly hope.

Thusly, he spoke, "Fine. I don't care what you think about me, Neji… but if you treat Hinata like that again, I swear to God I don't give a fuck about your Hyuuga pride, or your Branch or Main family crap, I'm gonna kick your ass so bad you won't be able to sit down for a year."

Before the rigid Hyuuga bodyguard had a chance to form the reply on his lips, Kiba had pulled up Hinata to her feet and promptly dragged her out of the door, slamming it shut with more force than required as they left.

_Fool_, Neji mentally spat at him; the strange glimmer of hope in his eyes only the Hyuuga heiress could summon had not escaped Neji's perceptive vision – nor had the grim glimmer of despair of equal strength that had surfaced the second thereafter done so.

_Keep dreaming_, he further thought with a mocking sneer. _But she'll never return your feelings. At least never to the extent of the feelings you harbor for __**her**_.

All of this, according to the sole occupant of the room after the hurricane, was just further evidence that dreaming was for utter fools. Personally, he'd never engage in such useless, delusional activities.

"_Because your __**pride**__ won't allow it?_"

He winced as Tenten's words struck him again, rewinding and playing themselves in his mind as hauntingly as a broken tape that could not be removed from a CD player that was never shut down.

"You don't understand a thing," he mumbled as he flopped down into the armchair, trying to block out her unfeminine, rough, _annoying _voice out of his head.

"_I really thought more of you than that. But right now, you're not much better than Hiashi with all your grudge shit and stupid pride. Have a nice fucking life._"

How could she compare him to Hiashi with such ease? The mere thought made his blood boil; that despicable creature who didn't even deserve to be labeled as a human being – did she truthfully see him in the same light? Somebody who acted out of resentment and frustration for a past he couldn't let go of? Somebody who acted out of pure _hatred_, letting innocent ones stand in range for his verbal missiles?

"_I really don't see how Hinata has to do with any of this. I mean, it isn't her fault that her dad is a complete asshole, that her mom was sick or that_ your _parents were sick, for that matter_."

Was it true? Had he really treated the heiress wrongfully? Did he have no right to behave the way he did – and furthermore, did he really care for her? Did the ever-so-infuriating Inuzuka actually have a right in interfering?

_No_, he concluded, wrath still not faded, _he didn't have any right at all_. _No matter how close he may consider himself being to Hinata-sama, this is family matters; which is in turn none of his concern whatsoever._

But did Tenten?

"_Maybe she said that for a reason, you know_," Ino's voice spoke as an echo in his mind, which at the moment was infinitely empty for answers to his questions.

He had spent almost his entire life knowing Tenten. Even if she had been absent for two years in China in search of her own family, she had still been a part of the Hyuuga compound for a longer period, and she had the right to have more access to its family matters than anybody else besides the Hyuugas themselves.

But did that mean her presumption had been correct and not just a speech configured by anger, with no trace of truth in it?

Heaving a sigh, Neji slumped in his chair, for the first time relaxing his posture in a long time as he leaned forward, elbows on his knees as his interlaced hands supported his chin. He did not have any answers to his questions yet, but the day was still young, and with no company present, it'd be easier to clear his mind.

But at least he knew where to begin, he mused as he picked up the smooth, charcoal-colored telephone and dialed the number to a certain bun-haired martial arts champion's cell phone.

* * *

_I can not believe I let you go  
Or what should say is, I should've grabbed you up and never let you go_

* * *

"Oh, Uchiha-san, please sit down! Would you like to have a cup of tea? A cup of coffee? Bagels? Or perhaps croissants… Risa, would you bring the croissants please? And make it quick!"

"No, it's fine," interjected the boy in question – the well-known prodigy, ex-captain of The Academy's soccer team as well as co-founder and lead singer of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, namely Uchiha Sasuke – through clenched teeth, looking very much on the verge of throwing the antique china vase next to him at the woman; "We just ate, Watanabe-san."

"Oh, don't call me that," twittered Watanabe Tomiko, who, not very unlike her daughter, had dyed her petite bob a not all too flattering shade of platinum blonde, with a murky purple showing at the roots. "It isn't my 37th birthday yet."

"You had a kid when you were 20?" Naruto questioned in abashment. "Isn't your husband like, 80 or something?"

Ino smoothly whacked Naruto at the back of his head with the high heel of her sandal and managed to put it back on in a matter of seconds, all while laughing awkwardly and apologetically. "You mustn't mind him, Watanabe-san, he's a bit… thick-headed sometimes."

"Hey!" the blonde exclaimed accusingly as Tomiko ignored Ino without as much as a glance in her direction as her eyes sparkled with a strange, malevolent greed as she continued to – or it was at least what Naruto guessed – mentally undress Sasuke with her barely existent mud-colored eyes.

"My, you're even more handsome than Ami described," she gushed as she ran a finger along his bicep. "And muscular! Uchiha-san, you work out a lot, no?"

"Is it just me, or is Ami's mom hitting on your boyfriend?" Naruto whispered to Ino, who looked like she'd detonate at any given second, tackling the woman and ripping her inner organs out like a wild animal gone loose.

"Your girlfriend must be very jealous," she purred as her fingers pried through the fuming Uchiha's hair, "as a lot of girls must be after you."

"And she's standing right here," Ino uttered with at an unnecessary high volume as Tomiko finally twirled around, wearing an irritated scowl as the blonde pressed on, "When are we going to start with the ad video?"

"When that little pink-haired girl –" ("_Sakura_," Naruto supplied in vain for the umpteenth time that afternoon,) "- gets back from the restroom. And speaking of which, some rearrangements have been made."

"Rearrangements?" repeated the supermodel with an eyebrow raised questioningly.

"Well, I know that your manager requested things to be a certain way, but unfortunately, we don't quite agree with his suggestion. Due to the fact that the color matching would simply be more correct, we've organized this project so that Uzumaki-san is paired up with Yamanaka-san, and Uchiha-san with Haruno-san."

"What?!" Ino screeched, her voice turning shrill with fury. "This thing is broadcast all over Japan! What if people think that I'm Naruto's girlfriend, and Sakura is Sasuke-kun's? That'd just be completely _wrong_! I mean, we're going to act as _couples_, aren't we? What're the tabloids going to say?"

"It's only an advertisement video, Yamanaka-san," Tomiko answered, vexed.

"_Only_ an advertisement video? You _flew_ us all the way to New York and paid for all expenses and everything, and then you say it's _just_ an advertisement video? Yeah, sure, with all that in mind, it sure does seem like it's _only_ an advertisement video! I bet it's all Ami's doing, isn't it?"

"This is nothing personal, Yamanaka-san. You've been flown all the way to New York simply due to the purpose that I'm the head in marketing for Watanabe Corp., and I was unable to travel to Japan for _just_ an advertisement video. For that sake, we instead chose to have you come here. And the fact that you've been paired up with Uzumaki-san has completely nothing to do with my daughter," she added coolly, "it is simply because you're both blonde and blue-eyed, and would therefore look better together, whereas Uchiha-san and Haruno-san fit together perfectly in our advertisement video for 'Fire and Ice'."

"I don't _care_!" she screamed. "It's not _fair_, _I_'m Sasuke-kun's girlfriend, and nobody should think anything else!"

"Why they would is beyond me," the woman retorted dryly, sarcasm evident in her tone as Ino glared, eyes wide with raw anger, at her.

"C'mon, Ino," Naruto attempted to console her, "it's just a one-time thing, alright? We can just tell all the tabloids that they're wrong."

"Don't you _care_, Naruto? Don't you _care_ that they're not going to listen, that they're going to call me and Sakura desperate groupies, and that everybody's having sex with each other in our group? Don't you _care_ that other people might think that Sakura and Sasuke-kun are a couple, that they're together, that they _kiss_, that they have _sex_?"

He flinched visibly, stiffening as an undecipherable expression found its way to his face; the glimpse of a tortured look of hurt could be seen in his sapphire orbs as her speech had hit him in his weakest spot. However, Ino's digestion of his reaction to her speech was cut short as Sasuke spoke up, more captiously than before; "Enough, Ino."

"What?" she exploded, gawking at her boyfriend with bulging azure orbs. "Now _you_ don't care, either? Aren't you supposed to be on _my_ side?"

"Enough is enough," he rasped, his voice as chilly as the fall breeze outside on New York's streets. "While these conditions are inconvenient, I've to say quite honestly I couldn't care less about this ad video. As a matter of fact, if it's going to be that much trouble, we might as well just quit the job."

"You can't do that!" Tomiko cried, scandalized; she had previously absorbed the on-going verbal combat with great interest, but had now dropped her role as merely an audience. "We've paid hell of a lot of money to just have you stay here so we can actually _do_ the video, and you're just going to walk out on me? You disappoint me, Uchiha-san. And here I thought you'd actually match your older brother's standards."

It all happened in an instant; the bagel in Sasuke's hand was crushed to bits as he dropped the remnants to the floor, rising out of the chair speedily; his eyes narrowing to mere slits of pure, unadulterated rage, he glared at her icily.

Least to say, if looks could kill, Tomiko and the rest of New York's inhabitants would've been mere history left for the few surviving eyewitnesses to tell as a tale of horror for centuries onward.

"Watch me," he hissed as he promptly pivoted around and marched out of the room.

Sasuke was merely a couple of meters away from the large glass doors on the first floor of the Watanabe Corp.'s main headquarters when a certain roseate-haired being bumped headfirst into his chest. Being the stronger one, he remained upright while she rubbed her aching head with a moan, then realizing what – or rather, who – her obstacle had been.

"Uchiha-san," she uttered aloud, surprised. "Where're you going?"

"Back," he grumbled, annoyed; he had not counted on meeting the pinkette on his way out.

"Back where? But hey, you aren't done with the video yet –" Realization dawning upon her, Sakura's expression turned serious. "You're quitting?"

"Is there a problem with that?" he retorted with a fearful hiss, causing her to flinch visibly.

"Yes," she replied, almost inaudible as she diverted her sight away from his formidable gaze. "For Ino."

As silence fell anew, she gained the courage to speak up again, taking his silence as a gesture to continue; "You promised… you wouldn't hurt her. And I know this is all a pain in the ass," she laughed uneasily, "but it's really a big deal to her. I don't know what happened, but please… try to endure it."

"Fine," he snarled, his voice still snappish; but at least, Sakura realized to her relief, the deadly intent had decreased in his tone as she dared to face him again.

"Well, at least Ami is not here – although her mother sure makes a great substitute. We should be thankful that she's stuck in Japan doing makeup tests for her complete failure in maths."

At the mention of Watanabe Tomiko, Sasuke's face expression darkened considerably once more. Even in the bright sunlight, where his skin almost looked translucent, Sakura could see the beauty in his aristocratic features – even when it wore such a distorted expression.

_Not the time to get distracted_, she reprimanded herself – they needed a change of subject.

"So… what's the problem, anyway?" she prodded, trying to keep her calm without putting any of her fright up for display. "Did Ami's mother strike a nerve while I was gone?"

"She decided that she'd switch the places of you and Ino for the advertisement videos," explained Sasuke brusquely. "She promptly refused and threw a tantrum."

"Oh. Um… well." Reluctantly, she felt a wave of relief wash her insides as though purifying her completely – at least she'd not have to put up with the lovey-dovey action between the happy couple for several hours whilst the rest of the Japan would see it for months on TV.

However, as she fully grasped the cause of the feeling, she once more felt a sinking sensation, as though her heart had dropped in the endless pits of her stomach – even at that rocky bottom, guilt managed to find it and penetrate it, and it was almost as her entire being had been painted in black.

_How selfish you are, Sakura,_ a voice hauntingly alike Ino's berated her, though she tried to shut it out to no success. Finally, she was snapped back to reality when she realized Sasuke was staring at her, waiting for the continuation of her response.

"That's awful," she forced herself to lie, averting her gaze away from him once more to the view of Manhattan outside of the glass doors in the lobby. "But, you know… we've to do it. For _her_."

Silence. Then, "… Aa."

"Well," she spoke up once more with liveliness uncalled for as her lips quirked upwards into a bright smile, "it _could_'ve been worse. Just imagine if Ami had been here… geez, I think I wouldn't be the only one to jump off a skyscraper, that's for sure. Right, Uchiha-san?"

"… Don't," he suddenly said, causing her façade to slightly drop in astonishment. "Don't call me that. You sound like _her_."

He spat '_her_' – naturally referring to Watanabe Tomiko – with such resentment that Sakura stifled a giggle, trying not to recall the pain-instilling memories of being associated with the very same term, and with a not all-too-different tone, spoken from the very same lips.

"Alright… Sasuke."

The lack of the long-gone suffix lingered in the air like a question waiting for its response; but it'd remain unanswered, as it had stirred too many painful memories which had long ago settled in the dust of their minds, buried deep underground in their hearts.

Memories that almost seemed to belong to a dream they had once lived, once upon a time.

* * *

_I miss the times we almost __shared  
I miss the love that was almost there_

* * *

Silence.

It was a word – and also a state – that Inuzuka Kiba was anything but used to. Being the second most known loudmouth in the group, he was seldom one to be afraid to speak his mind – or in the case of his usual acquaintances, one to simply not _bother_ with the art of conversation.

As a matter of fact, his speaking abilities were quite well-known, surpassing even Naruto's; while Naruto was one to turn to for pep talks and convincing speeches - or just simply random rants – Kiba was the 'charmer' of the group, the one that knew how to smooth-talk and simply get away with just about everything.

But, as rare as it was, Kiba could at times be capable of actually keeping his mouth shut when needed. And at that precise moment, while it was not needed, the infrequent occasion had found its place as he was at a loss of words as he stormed the streets of New York, infuriated beyond belief.

_That coward_, he yelled inwardly at the top of his lungs. _That son of a bitch! That… that…_

He halted abruptly in the middle of the street, not even quite sure of his surroundings as he forced his eyelids to close against his instinct – being in an unfamiliar location with something, or rather _someone_, he wanted to protect, did not call for temporary blindness – and took a deep breath, reminding him of his purpose.

_Hinata,_ was the mere word – and name – surfacing in his mind like an unnaturally clear sound over the muddle of barely audible curses aimed at the same person's cousin.

Opening his eyes, he prepared himself to glance sideways to look at the girl and mere solace for his rage, when another voice cut his mental turmoil off – one that was not familiar to his ears, but still found its way to him still, as his words had been directed to the person he had wished to speak with himself.

"Albino," a baritone voice hissed tauntingly; although the word was foreign to him, as it was spoken in another language, he knew its meaning. His head snapped to the source of the sound, his insides boiling with rage.

The speaker was an adolescent, merely a year or two their senior; he was taller than Kiba (who boasted a mere 1.69cm, which still made him the second tallest out of the members in _Konoha's Golden Leaf_) – almost half a head his superior – and was rather lanky, with a hazel hairstyle that more resembled a carefully arranged imitation of a bed-head, and sharp, piercing ice-blue eyes.

In some ways, he could easily have been a relative of Naruto's – he certainly didn't lack the looks that would make one associate with the blonde – but his eyes spoke of resentment, of frustration – and he had chosen Hinata as his victim to lash out on.

But even knowing he probably had his reasons, Kiba was neither in the mood nor had the desire to simply let him go easily.

"I'm sorry, what did you call her?" he asked with mock politeness, his eyes narrowing dangerously as the speaker's head slightly turned his way, scanning Kiba before wearing a taunting sneer on his face.

"Albino," he repeated, louder than before; "do you want me to say it again?"

"Say it one more time and I'll pull out your teeth one by one until you can't even say the word 'help' even if you wanted to," Kiba growled menacingly, baring his fang-like teeth.

"Is that a threat?" the boy retorted, his voice low and smooth, but a warning of danger – and a slightly disturbing undertone of excitement – lurking in his voice.

"Take it however you want," he threw back waspishly, his eyes adapting an animalistic glare, as one an ill-tempered wolf would give an intruder of its territory.

The two took a step towards each other, the boy puffing out his chest as he took advantage of his height, clearly trying to emphasize their height difference as he smirked arrogantly at him. Kiba, on the other hand, crouched slightly, as though preparing for a spring.

"No," Hinata voiced her thoughts in a barely audible tone; the remark was told to deaf ears as Kiba let out a feline growl as he leapt towards the boy, brown eyes now wide with anger as the boy in turn dodged him, preparing to let his fist crash against his opponent's face.

Kiba avoided the attack with little effort as he instead grasped hold of the wrist belonging to the extended fist, twisting it; this, in turn, provoked a grunt of pain from the boy, who squinted, now just as irritated as his enemy was, not the slightest trace of arrogance left as he aimed his other fist towards him.

This time, it made contact with the side of his head as he only managed to flit to the side in time to avoid having it touch his cheek; he then kneed the boy's stomach, causing him to double over with a tortured face expression and a rather loud 'ow'.

"Stop…," a murmur arose from beside him as his eyes did not leave the boy's, who had recovered from Kiba's attack; giving the latter a maddened glare, he regained his original fighting stance, not relaxing his posture. "Stop!"

The two's heads snapped at the source of the sound; fists clenched tightly at her sides and with cheeks ablaze, Hinata stared at them with obvious discomfort and anxiety in her colorless eyes. "Please…" Her voice lowered to its usual mumble. "Stop."

"You should listen to your girlfriend," the boy spat venomously, "She probably doesn't want you to get _hurt_."

Kiba's eyes flitted angrily in his direction again, but a smooth, cool hand on his boiling hot arm, soothing his veins pounding with adrenaline, hindered him. "Don't," she breathed as he could merely blink as her face was closer than before, making him intoxicated with her very presence, "don't let it get to you."

"Consider yourself lucky," he then snarled at the boy, who merely snorted, and with a roll of his eyes, disappeared out of sight as he blended in with the rest of the ever-moving crowd.

"You do too much," Hinata spoke up once more, eyes diverted from his face as she distanced herself from him again, her hand

(_to his great disapproval_)

slowly descended from its earlier position. "Kiba-kun… you do too much for me already… you don't have to…"

She trailed off, leaving the sentence unfinished as embarrassment overcame her. He knew what he was referring to – his fights during the day for her sake; first Neji, now this stranger. Both had infuriated him because of their behavior against Hinata, but when it came to the alabaster-eyed, pale-skinned heiress, nothing was ever too much

(_except perhaps his own feelings_)

and that also applied for his sense of protection when it came to said heiress.

Thus, he replied, voice still filled to the brim with frustration; "If I don't, who will? Neji? That bastard wouldn't know good from bad. All he knows is following orders. He's a machine… not a human being."

"Neji-onii-san has his reasons for –"

"I know that," he cut across her, impatient. They fell once more in silence for the shortest period as he averted his gaze away from her – her own was directed at her feet, as though she was inspecting the pavement, or bowing her head in shame; knowing her, it was probably the latter, he concluded – and scanned his surroundings.

Though it was early in the day, there were plenty of people outdoors. People hurrying to their respective places, places they belonged, places where others that they cared for were. None of them calmly stood rooted in one place the way he and Hinata was – they created a blockage that people avoided as naturally as though they had been poles, or trees, and not humans.

As though they were hindrances on the road to the place where these people's hearts were located.

Turning back to her, he tried to ignore the void left behind of the empty space where he had once held his own, aching to have it back – or at least have another in exchange of the one he had lost.

Smiling bitterly, the ever-so-usual realization of not being able to get the replacement he wished for struck him as he said, "Y'know, I'm 100 percent sure that one day that brainless idiot Naruto will wake up and see just how wonderful you are, and the two of you are gonna fall in love."

As her head was turned up abruptly, he automatically looked away from the flickering hope in her eyes – the same flickering hope he knew could be seen in his whenever he was in her presence. But knowing that the same hope didn't apply for each other _hurt_.

_Hurt_ was the understatement of the year, he added mentally. It was as though somebody had clawed his chest open, roamed about in search for his heart but not been able to find any, instead only ploughing in the empty void, ripping old wounds open to let it bleed afresh.

It was as though falling from a cliff, and never knowing when he'd hit the concrete ground, only being able to scream soundlessly for an infinity as he obeyed the law of gravity, continuously free-falling into the pits of… what? Hell?

_Hell can'__t be worse than being in love_, he thought.

He knew he was being overdramatic. He knew that it was all in his mind, and that he shouldn't even be feeling that way.

But as he once again looked into her eyes, he felt so absorbed by her very being that he was unable to feel anything else. For just the fraction of a second, it was as though his heart was there with him again. As though he wasn't falling – but _flying._

Falling in love with her, just _loving _her – was as easy as that. As easy as to stop fighting against his instincts, as easy as to give in, as easy as to simply leaning backwards and _letting _himself fall rather than trying to walk away from the magnetic force drawing him towards the edge of the cliff that made him cling to his sanity.

And then, as he let his guard down for the temptation of falling for _her_, reality would come crashing down upon him and drag him towards the ground again.

"But it ain't gonna happen soon, y'know," he spoke up once more. "At least not 'til you get closer. I don't know when that is, but until then… I'm gonna protect you."

_Until then_.

The words repeated themselves in his mind painfully, each time more torturing than the last. And then what? Was he supposed to simply endure it? Endure seeing them together, of fighting against all his natural urges to rip Hinata out of Naruto's arms and simply run away with her, far away where he couldn't _see _her, where he couldn't _touch _her…

Feeling his insides taint with guilt, he fitted his tightly balled fists into his pockets and proceeded to look away once more.

"… Thank you," she replied, the shadow of a smile appearing on her lips as he glanced sideways at her. Then, as her eyes averted towards the front cover of a Japanese newspaper at the newspaper stand not too far away from them, adorned with a picture of the Kazekage and his siblings, her face expression once again looked tortured.

He looked at her, hesitance crawling across his face as his hand, once more relaxed – and slightly trembling – found its way out of his pocket. Slowly raising it, it shook some more as it almost reached her cheek; for the fraction of a moment, it rested there, in mid-air, only a couple of millimeters away from her snowy, almost translucent, skin.

(_almost touching _her_, as surreal as it seems)_

Then, as it traveled upward, it rested on top of her head, ruffling her hair gently. "Just you wait," he mumbled, his voice breaking slightly – something barely noticeable as his voice lowered a notch at every syllable leaving his lips. "One day… he'll see just how wonderful you are."

_Just__ as how wonderful _I _think you are, _he added quietly in his own mind.

* * *

_How could I celebrate a love that wasn't real,  
And if it didn't happen, why does my heart feel_

* * *

If the mental climate of a social atmosphere could determine the weather, Sato Natsuki, 27-year-old professional stylist decided, then she wouldn't be surprised if polar bears would start roaming the room.

Natsuki had once heard, that having a celebrity as one's client was a dream come true for most stylists. Besides the fact that they, more than anybody else, needed very little work with their appearance as they were already fully-fledged perfect in almost every aspect, the pay was beyond description.

The only dark side to the job, besides being spoken to like a mere servant, having to endure the diva's picky nature, and trying to perform flawlessly at maximum pressure and under complete stress, was the dramatic persona most celebrities were capable of summoning.

Natsuki could only agree as she hurried about, preparing a certain Uchiha Sasuke, a supposedly famous celebrity back in her home country which she had left 10 years prior – Japan – for his advertisement video.

"We are to inform you of your individual videos as we wait for the girls – they're informed as of this moment while they're being styled," Watanabe Tomiko supplied chilly, her previous behavior of excessive warmth completely gone after Sasuke's mild tantrum; something that the person in question – who, not very unlike the girls, was styled, but against his will – was perfectly fine with.

"Yes?" Sasuke prodded with impatience as he dismissed Natsuki for the umpteenth time as her feeble tries of 'But, Uchiha-san' were simply waved off with irritation. Heaving a sigh, she put the eyeliner she had held tentatively between her fingers aside, picking up the hairspray instead as she started styling his hair.

"You," Tomiko snarled, as though she wished to insult him, but decided against the better; "are going to do a video with Haruno-san. The theme is the same as the name of the product, 'Fire and Ice'; the video is going to start showing Haruno-san alone at a high-class party, whereas you, dressed quite casually, walk down the streets, listening to the music of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_; both of you take a gulp of the drink, and then, as you pass the party, you stop as she rushes out of the door. She stops just a step away from reaching the ground from the staircase, reaching out her hand as you do so as well; with the help of digital animation, we'll fake a fire in the palm of her hand and ice from yours, and as your hands touch, the screen whites out, showing the product."

The one spoken to merely shrugged in response, seemingly not caring enough for the explanation to make a comment. He instead once more dismissed Natsuki, who was trying to clasp a chain necklace with a slightly broken heart around his neck.

"Whereas you, Uzumaki-san," the head of the marketing department of Watanabe Corporation continued, her agitated face expression softening just the slightest, "are going to do a video with Yamanaka-san. You will both be at a high-class party, where you'll be playing guitar – the music of your band will be played – as Yamanaka-san walk down the catwalk. You catch sight of each other, and afterwards, as you both drink from your separate bottles of 'Jungle Fever', you will walk up towards each other and grasp each other's cheeks passionately, with an almost animalistic desire, as your surroundings will be turned into a jungle with the help of digital animation once more. After that, the product will be displayed."

"Alright," Naruto responded automatically as he let his stylist cheerfully do whatever she wanted; Natsuki gazed at her jealously as Sasuke batted her hands away from his hair again.

"Do you _mind_?" he finally growled ferociously at her, as she tried to approach him again with some lipliner.

"I'm sorry, Uchiha-san," she apologized meekly, whilst imagining what it'd be like to try her black belt karate skills on the almost angelic face belonging to the demon in front of her. "I'm just trying to do my job."

"You'll have to excuse the bastard," the blonde smiled at her with kind, azure eyes. "He's just being all PMS-y today."

"Shut up, dobe," the latter snapped in response.

"See? Never mind him. Either way, he's already a _pretty_ boy, so trust me, lipliner and eyeliner isn't really going to cut it. You'll need something more like… purple eyeshadow," he suggested, eyes sparkling with mischief as Natsuki giggled.

"Yes, because that'd look simply _charming_," he remarked, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, it did on your idol – Orochimaru," remarked Naruto calmly, his eyes only narrowing the slightest at the mention of the name.

"Don't compare me with that snake," he hissed acidly.

"You sure didn't mind being compared with him when you just vanished overnight and decided to crash at his place for two years."

The silence that persisted after his comment was almost as sharp as that of a ringing sound piercing through its eardrums at maximum volume; almost as deafening as that of the screams from a massacre. Yet, nothing was spoken, but the tension thickened to the point that poor Natsuki could only fidget in nervousness.

Thankfully, it was broken by the arrival of the girls, as their voices could be heard as they approached the room in which the boys had been styled.

"Are you sure about this hairstyle? I don't know about an updo… I spent all night trying to make my hair look shiny and natural, so I think you should really show it off properly, you know?" came the drifting voice of the blonde that Natsuki had been told was the girlfriend of her stubborn client.

"Yes, Yamanaka-san, it is very popular in Hollywood," the fellow stylist that had entertained her supplied with forced patience.

"But this isn't Hollywood we're talking about. I mean, what if the Japanese people don't like it? Do you know what the tabloids would say? They'd call it a fashion disaster!"

"I assure you, miss, it is no fashion disaster of any kind –"

The stylist's speech was cut short as the door was opened; the two girls that would be featured in the advertisement, as well as their lesser eye-catching stylists, entered. Natsuki sucked in her breath at the success of the job – whereas Yamanaka Ino, the blonde supermodel girlfriend of Uchiha Sasuke, had already been fabulously beautiful at first sight, the real miracle was her friend – the supposedly plain girl with the strange, pink hair (which apparently, according to her, was natural).

The girl's roseate chest-length hair fell in soft cascades down her shoulders, her fringe drawn to one side instead of showcasing her (slightly large) forehead; the hair was only divided by a thin metallic headband in the color of navy, bordering on black; this, in turn, showcased the two petite pearl earrings adorning her pale-skinned ears.

Her face, which was rather pale-skinned, had been adorned with slight color on her cheeks – no exaggerated amount – and her jade eyes were further enhanced by a multi-layered eyeshadow in three different shades of powdery darkness; nothing that'd make her look like a rocker, but just something that made her orbs look bigger than they were. A thin line of eyeliner as well as kohl had been applied as well, and somehow, the mascara had made her eyelashes look amazingly long and well-curled. Despite this amount of makeup, it still managed to look light and natural, yet clearly visible.

She fashioned a red Versace dress that didn't quite live up to its label; it was a simple, yet elegant summer's dress with a dashing V-shaped neckline that subtly called for one's attention, further enhanced by the petite ribbon in the cliff of her breasts, which was attached to a thick band dividing the upper part from the rest of the dress; the skirt billowed from underneath her chest, flowing in silky crimson waves to her thighs, showing off her long, slim legs.

On her feet were metallic high-heeled sandals – Manolo Blahnik, the stylist guessed – the color of white gold, a crisscross maze of straps adorning the front of the shoe, and the thin and not too high heel, as well as the thin, buckled ankle strap of snake skin, drawing further attention to her well-shaped legs.

"We-eell…," Watanabe Tomiko breathed, dividing the simple word into two separate parts. "That's quite… passable."

Natsuki smiled as her eyes flitted to the handsome blonde, who she had heard was the pink-haired girl's boyfriend; not surprisingly, his eyes were wide as he took in her appearance with awe, as a wide smile slowly crept onto his lips at the sight of her.

The girl in question did not wear any face expression besides that of slight embarrassment, making her cheeks rosier as she realized the sudden attention averted at their entrance – she was possibly unaware of the attention she had unconsciously conquered for herself – as she returned his gaze with an undecipherable look, filled with questions that could not be voiced.

As she glanced at her own client, however, she was more than astounded to see that he, as well – the boy who had been completely devoid of any reaction whatsoever up until now, and who she had in secret suspected to be a humanoid robot fresh from a real-life _Terminator_, or at least an alien sent from upper space – was staring at her in what could only be fatal attraction

(_or at least fatal to _him, _she was only grateful she wasn't his girlfriend)_

or, she mused, the gaze of a blind man who had seen for the first time in his life.

It was only then that she realized that the girl, Haruno Sakura – _what a fitting name_, she thought as her eyes flickered to her hair color – was not looking back at the blonde.

She was returning the stare of another, her own eyes reflecting his emotions perfectly – she, too, apparently as mutually blinded by him

(_and yet, rather than _'blinded'_, it seemed more like their eyes had been opened for the first time_)

as he was by her.

This, she realized, did not pass by unnoticed by his own girlfriend, who looked utterly annoyed – or rather, that'd be quite the understatement as she looked downright _furious_, as she cleared her throat meaningfully.

As this had yet to spawn any reaction from the person in question, she once again cleared her throat and spoke irritably and at a volume that was not needed for conversation at such proximity; "Sasuke-_kun_!"

He jumped at the sudden sound, as all heads snapped to the blonde companion of the pinkette. She, too, radiated a beauty of great caliber, but to no surprise – however, it was slightly dimmed by the aggravated face expression she wore; her face was slightly more tan than her friend's, and her sharp cheekbones were accentuated by the slight tint of pink. Her baby-blue orbs looked bigger than ever, the glittering bronze eyeshadow creating a contrast with the smoky dark from her thick, long lashes, which almost reached her eyebrows, and the coal paint on her eyelids from her eyeliner.

Her hair, which had previously subsided in soft golden waves now looked more rigid with hairspray as her fringe, as Sakura's, had been parted to one side, and the rest of her hair drawn back in what looked like a ponytail – however, on her back, it plummeted down, perfectly straight, on one side as an eternally blowing wind was holding it upright.

She, too, wore a dress created by the famous designers of Versace, but one that clung tightly to her figure. It, too, fashioned a V-shaped neckline, but was slightly longer as it only loosened the tight grasp of her body at her knees; it was a pastel shade of azure, like the color of her eyes, bordering on the kind of blue that one could find in a thick layer of ice; a faded animal pattern could be spotted on it, as though it had been washed many a time before being used.

Like Sakura, she also bore a pair of Manolo Blahnik heels, but a pair in the color of pure alabaster. The open-toed vamp at the front of the shoe was gathered with a rhinestone buckle, and had a slightly covered heel which was just slightly lower than Sakura's, as she was taller than the girl.

Natsuki could only feel envious – but nonetheless awed – by the two incomparable beauties in front of her, as she felt the tension thicken in the air again; her stony-faced client looked at her with a gaze that clearly suggested that he'd at any given moment snap his attention back to the pinkette, and remarked slowly with his baritone voice;

"You look great… Ino."

The silence after his comment was ear-ringing; it was obvious that it had been a half-hearted compliment, something that apparently escaped the pinkette's ears as she diverted her gaze away from the couple with a slightly sorrowful look in her eyes. However, the two blondes didn't fail to notice as Naruto adapted an expression not too different from his girlfriend's, and Ino one of pure fury.

"We're going to start the advertisement video now," Watanabe Tomiko spoke up, snapping everybody back to reality with a start; it seemed as Natsuki hadn't been the only one to forget her presence as the four Japanese teenagers looked at her, taken aback by her comment.

"Oh… um, alright," the pinkette babbled unsurely, until she noticed that she was the only one speaking, and quieted down once more with burning cheeks.

However, attention had already been reaverted to her as Uchiha Sasuke once more gazed at her intensively, and her best friend with what looked like distaste and envy; Naruto's look of anguish remained intact as the four exited the room, and Natsuki finally allowed herself to breathe.

_Celebrities,_ she mused as she shook her head, _always so dramatic._

* * *

_I miss the times that we never had  
What happened to us, we were almost there_

* * *

The first time in kindergarten when the teacher asked everybody what they wanted to be when they grew up, Yamanaka Ino replied; "Beautiful."

"That's not a job, Ino-chan," the teacher had assured her kindly, but Ino had proceeded with screeching loudly that it was until she agreed.

This was an ambition that had persisted throughout the years. As she grew older, she realized the word 'model' was the one she had been looking for back then. Everybody around her remarked her cute appearance, which attracted many admirers even at such a tender age, and they all predicted that she'd make a brilliant beauty queen in the future.

Since her 12th birthday, she had won a grand total of 9 beauty pageants.

When she was 14 years old and had been roaming the streets of Tokyo with Sakura one summer, she had been stopped and asked to audition for a model agency. Thrilled, she had tried it out, and her career had fast-forwarded into celebrity status within a short period of time.

Perhaps one could call her vain, or just plainly obsessed with appearances. But it wasn't about that, she convinced herself. It was because she had nothing else.

(_not amazing intelligence, or a kind heart, or any useful talents, like _her)

And so, she thrived for her beauty. She lived for it. It was the nurturing ingredient in her life to keep her persona intact, to keep her self-confidence high.

(_although she tried to tell herself _he _liked her for her personality and not her appearance_)

And now, she thought darkly as she shot a displeased glare in the direction of where the other advertisement video was shot across the room, it had all been taken away from her in the blink of an eye.

"And… cut," the director spoke tiredly as he shot an exasperated glance at the two blondes standing opposite each other, both wearing sullen face expressions. "Uzumaki-san, it's supposed to look like you've seen the most beautiful woman in your life, not as though you've been asked to attend a funeral. And Yamanaka-san… I want you to _look_ at your partner. _Look_ at him."

Fighting the urge to roll her eyes in response, she merely obediently scanned the person before her. Naruto looked no different from how his usual appearance in her eyes; merely just a change of clothes as he fashioned a slightly carelessly buttoned shirt in the same light blue color as her own dress, a pair of dark jeans matching his loose black tie, as well as white sneakers.

"Do you see that?" the director pressed on, impatient. "He's perfectly good to look at. Now, I don't know if you actually think he's hot or not, but at least just _pretend _that you do. Okay?"

"Fine," she drawled waspishly, giving him a stare that indicated that it was anything _but_ fine. Retracing her steps, she walked back to where she was supposed to take a gulp of the product – _Jungle Fever_, the low-calorie beverage produced by Watanabe Corp. – as her eyes once again trailed to where her heart resided.

Sasuke was running down the street, looking gorgeously drool-worthy in a navy wife-beater underneath an open white zip-up t-shirt; black baggy shorts reaching his knees adorned his pale, muscled legs, and white sneakers with dark-blue stripes were on his feet. He was not overly accessorized, but his dark-blue headphones were incredibly eye-drawing; besides that, he only fashioned a subtle, but thick chain bracelet on his left wrist.

As he stopped by the staircase on which Sakura was currently running down, the director yelled: "Take 17… and… action!"

She slowly lifted the bottle of _Jungle Fever_ to her lips, trying not to grimace at the strange taste of the mixture of chili and strawberry blending themselves in her mouth, as she gazed at Naruto. The two walked simultaneously towards each other, and stopping at the center of the 'room', she clasped her hands on his surprisingly cold cheeks as she tried to summon the effort to not look away.

"Focus," he whispered, his hot breath gusting her face. Blinking irritably, she stared at the face before her; admittedly, Naruto was not bad to look at

(_good enough for Sakura, at the very least_)

but he simply wasn't Uchiha Sasuke.

Something the person in question was all too painfully aware of as he tried to gather his concentration on the task at hand. "Don't you trust her? Or _him_?" he continued as they tried to shut out the buzz of the director yelling at them not to move as he loudly discussed their pose with Tomiko.

"Do you?" she asked, quietly but clearly; although her voice was just a murmur, its tone was piercingly sharp.

As no reply came, she laughed darkly under her breath; "… I thought so."

As silence once again conquered the petite sphere that only seemed to cover them as they shut away their surroundings, all they were aware of were their thoughts – both directed at the same couple just some distance away.

_Trust_. She repeated the word in her mind, trying it out on her mental lips. Was it really so much about trust as it was about herself? It was a stupid question, really. _Of course_ she trusted them. Sakura would never hurt her for the world, and Sasuke… well, he must love her, after all that they had been through. And had he not loved her, why would he stay by her side for almost two years?

(_yet somehow when they kissed, when she looked into his eyes and whispered his name, she would wonder, is this really love? is this the real thing?)_

Or was it all about herself?

(_and she'd tell herself that it must be, because what more can you ask for than the prince of your dreams)_

But still, somehow, she'd sometimes feel as though being with him was not as carefree as it might seem. As though every moment was the last one, and she'd have to fight for more.

(_because if this isn't love, then love is just a dream that doesn't exist)_

Fighting. That was it – being with him was like fighting; fighting against her instincts, fighting against _nature_, as ridiculous as it'd sound.

(_or perhaps simply just a dream in which she didn't belong)_

Fighting against destiny.

She shook the head off with an inward laugh of unease – "destiny"? If such a thing existed, then she must belong with him. She had heard countless times how perfect they were for one another.

(_at least more perfect than _she _would be with him)_

And still, if she followed her instincts, what would they be? The reply didn't exist. Instincts had been programmed into mankind for the sake of survival, and for the sake of one's self. Her instincts were not to let go of Sasuke – but to keep him. To desperately cling to him, so that he'd never leave.

(_even if she couldn't keep his heart away)_

And so, she'd keep fighting.

For Sasuke. For love. For _herself_.

She winced at her selfishness, feeling guilt penetrate every cell of her being like a sharp needle would through cotton; but she found no reason for it. There was no reason for guilt. She wasn't being selfish – she was being _logical_.

The feeling of being an outsider in her own relationship, of being an outsider of a blossoming love between her best friend and her boyfriend was just nonsense. Paranoia.

Even the despicable excuse of envy of her best friend's newly invented beauty was acceptable just to excuse what she felt.

_And it'__s downright ridiculous,_ she thought with as much confidence as she could muster. _Even if that feeling was real and just not paranoia, it's not going to happen anyway. Sakura is in love with Naruto, and Sasuke is in love with me. We're all happy that way._

"Aaaah!"

The shrill cry that punctured her sphere of thoughts caused her to quickly distangle from the blonde in front of her in order to snap her head at the source of the sound.

She was able to follow every movement; it all seemed to happen in slow-motion as Sakura fell headfirst down the stairs as Sasuke quickly moved upwards to catch her; she landed full-force into his arms, causing him to lose his balance; the two both fell backward as they landed ungraciously on the ground; Sakura on top of Sasuke in a heap of entangled arms and legs as their eyes widened,

(_realizing their dangerous proximity, as did Ino, who was inwardly screaming)_

and all she could was watch, horror-struck, as her best friend's face drew closer to her boyfriend's, and she was still falling

(_and all she could think was)_

slowly, descending

(_if love is a dream)_

as her lips slowly crossed the border between betrayal and loyalty – even if it was by accident –

(_then this is a nightmare)_

towards her boyfriend's lips.

* * *

_I miss the times that we used to kiss,  
At least in my dreams let me take my time and reminisce_

* * *

It was strange, Kiba pondered as he chitchatted with her as they proceeded down the corridor, how she so easily could control him.

When his temper was at its most fiery peak, she easily soothed it with just one touch or a couple of words; it was almost as though a chilly gust had diminished the fire, the _beast _within that was crying to reach out and hurt somebody.

_Well_, he contemplated as he absorbed her face expressions like an alcoholic would French wine, _if I'm the Beast, then she's the Beauty._

The only difference was that this Beauty did not belong with the Beast, but with the stupid dumbass prince that didn't realize what he had, he added mentally in utter displeasure.

"Thank you, Kiba-kun… for today," Hinata uttered aloud as she stopped by the door of her hotel room. The sincerity in her eyes, the kindness, the _warmth_ that emanated from them almost tore him apart.

_Can you at least yell at me? Scream at me? Be more of a bitch? _he wanted to shout at her.

"What're you thanking me for?" he laughed in a carefree voice. "What're friends for?"

Friends. _Friends_. The word echoed in his mind as though he was devoid of any thoughts, and it sought to repeat itself until another thought would manifest itself in its place.

She smiled. "You treat me too well, Kiba-kun."

He stared at her, not quite able to fully digest the words. How could anyone treat her _too_ well? If anyone was in need of being treated well, it was _her_ – how could anything be _too _much?

However, before he could summon a response, approaching steps reached their ears. Turning towards the nearing person simultaneously, Kiba tried to refrain from furrowing his brows as he laid his eyes on a certain Hyuuga Neji.

He was successfully thwarted from this as the cool touch of smooth, long fingers wrapped themselves gently around his arm. Hinata looked at him with a pleading stare before releasing her hold

(_much to his chagrin_)

and opened the door to her room with her card key, swiftly moving inside before shutting it once more.

"Inuzuka," Neji spoke as he finally came to a halt half a meter away from the dog-boy.

"Hyuuga," he replied coolly.

"… Po."

"What?" they both demanded of each other in utter confusion, both adapting an irritated scowl as they both realized neither had said the last word. Pivoting around, they faced a certain silver-haired man, whose smile could be seen through his white surgical mask.

"… and Dipsy," he finished as he took a step towards them cheerfully. "You're finally here."

"Kakashi?!" Kiba blurted out in pure astonishment as he backtracked a couple of steps, pointing at the manager of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ almost accusingly. "Where the hell have you been all day?!"

"I'm sorry, tubby dearest, but daddy had to run some errands."

"…"

"That sounds sick, man. _Sick_."

"Where's Tinky Winky and LaaLaa?" questioned Kakashi, ignoring his last remark as his eyes searched the emptied corridor.

"Tinky what?" Kiba answered blankly with a frown.

In response, Kakashi heaved a melancholy sigh as he lifted his hands in his air in exasperation, as though signalizing a gesture of defeat. "What's with teenagers these days? Doesn't anybody watch _Teletubbies _anymore?"

"In case you haven't noticed… we're actually seven_teen_, not seven," the previous said slowly, as though he was afraid he'd startle him.

At that moment, Naruto and Sasuke chose to surface as the blonde's voice pondered loudly, "Huh? What're you guys doing here?"

"And _there'_sTinky Winky and LaaLaa," Kakashi beamed as he waved gleefully at the approaching teens.

"Seriously?" Naruto wanted to know with sparkling eyes as he scanned his surroundings. "Where?!"

"… _You_'re LaaLaa, tubby dearest."

"Please, _please_, for the love of God, I beg you on my very knees, stop saying that," Kiba groaned in utter despair.

"I'm sorry if my well-defined, high-caliber humor is too much for you to take."

"Why do I get to be a _girl_?" the blonde whined.

"Obviously because you're blonde, so you get to be yellow. And because you like playing with balls," Kakashi explained calmly, with the patience of a parent speaking to a child.

"Laa, laa, laaaaaa," sang the dog-boy randomly as he smiled at thin air, "I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that for my mental health. Shut out the images, Kiba. Way to go. Shut out the images. Laa, laa, laa…"

"No way! I want to be Tinky Winky! He has a magic bag!"

"Isn't he homosexual?" Neji wondered aloud.

The group became quiet as all heads were turned towards the Hyuuga bodyguard in pure surprise; with slightly reddening cheeks, he hurriedly countered with, "It was on the news. There has been great controversy about it, I absolutely do not watch –"

"_Of course_ not," Kiba threw in evilly.

"So, wait," said Naruto with a thoughtful expression, "if I'm LaaLaa, and Sasuke gets to be Tinky Winky, who're Kiba and Neji?"

"I'm myself and nobody else," the latter deadpanned at once.

"Dude, you're just cranky 'cause you get to be bald," the previous argued.

"Neji is Dipsy, and Kiba is Po," Kakashi clarified calmly.

"Ha-_ha_!" exclaimed Naruto, pointing at Kiba tauntingly. "You get to be Po. Get it? _Poo_!"

"Your amazing level of maturity fails to surprise me, dobe," Sasuke remarked for the first time since their arrival.

"Well, at least I don't go around kissing others' girlfriends," he responded, cooling down at once as his tone adapted a certain undertone of iciness, though it on the exterior was nothing but casual.

Silence wrapped around them as tightly as a winter wind would to one standing underdressed outdoors, its density choking them; Kakashi merely looked away, his smile fading, as did Neji; Kiba merely looked slightly troubled at the sight of the two, who were staring at each other intensively – or at least, Naruto was. Sasuke had diverted his gaze away from the blonde's, and had surprisingly chosen not to reply.

"So…," Kiba spoke hesitantly, drawing out on the word to fill the lack of conversation as he turned towards the silver-haired man, "if we're all Teletubbies, what are you?"

"I'm… The Sun," the person in question replied with the tone of one who had received an epiphany.

"…"

"The Sun," deadpanned Sasuke monotonously.

"The Sun," repeated Kiba with an arched eyebrow.

"The Sun?!" Naruto exclaimed with orbs glittering in excitement.

"The Sun," Kakashi nodded as though to finish the topic.

"No way, that's cool! _I_ want to be The Sun!" cried Naruto, flailing his arms animatedly.

"There can only be one Sun, LaaLaa. For the sake of keeping the Teletubby world at peace… I must do it," said the Sun with the tortured voice of a martyr, as his eyes glimmered with unshed tears, staring out into a space far away from the viewers' reach.

"Aww! Wanna trade?"

"Not even if the Tubby Toaster depended on it."

"Please tell me that I'm suffering from a serious case of schizophrenia that allows me to hear voices, and not the current conversation I think I'm being a miserable witness to," Sasuke grumbled as he massaged his temples, following the two down the corridor towards his and Naruto's shared room.

Kiba's eyed rested on their retreating backs, reflecting over the previous silence and Naruto's statement; what could've possibly happened while he and Neji had been absent? Had Sasuke truly _kissed_ Sakura? The mere thought seemed unbelievable.

_But then again_, he mused as he recalled the look on Sasuke's face when he had seen Naruto had draped an arm around Sakura's shoulders the same morning, _it's not _that _unbelievable._

"Still angry with me?" Neji's voice pulled him back to reality as his eyes snapped back to the teen in front of him.

"Yeah," he replied as his eyes turned dull, stuffing his hands into his pockets; "but I'm gonna forgive you. For _her_."

His questioning look probed for an answer that he already had, but deciding to favor him, Kiba further enlightened him with, "Y'know, it's not fair to her. She always takes the blame for everything… she's like that. If we're gonna fight, she's just gonna take the shit. So that's why I forgive you."

"I didn't say sorry," he responded emotionlessly as Kiba's eyes lightened up with anger once more.

"You…!"

"And also, Inuzuka," he cut across him as he pulled out the card key allowing entrance to the room before them from his pocket, "using that principle of yours, I'd advise you to _suppress _those transparent feelings of yours."

He merely flinched in response.

"For her sake," Neji continued as a beep insinuating that the door had been opened could be heard, resting his hand on the doorhandle as he turned to look at the dog-boy again with sharp, milky-white eyes. "And for your own."

With that, he promptly entered the room, shutting the door closed behind him.

* * *

_You seem to be the perfect one for me,  
You're all I ever wanted  
It's hard to be close to you, my love  
I know it may sound crazy, but I'm in love with you…_

* * *

_Relax_, Haruno Sakura tried to tell herself in vain as she leaned against the orange wallpaper, pressing her palms against the wall in a try to relieve some of her physical energy bursting to explode through her veins, _it's just hypertension. High blood pressure._

"High blood pressure," she repeated for herself in a stressed voice, "Secondary hypertension indicates that the high blood pressure is a result to another condition, such as kidney disease or tumours."

_Kidney disease!_ she burst out in utter inward relief. _Of course. It's natural. I must've gotten some indication of it when I fell on top of Sasuke. Yeah, I probably just suddenly got an extremely fast-developing case of some form of kidney disease._

Her theory sounded more farfetched in her mind than when she had first created it seconds ago, but she was willing to accept any excuse but _that_.

_I can't_, she chanted for herself for the umpteenth time the same half-hour, _I can't, I shouldn't, I _won't.

Flopping down onto the flowery bed sheets of her king-size bed, she buried her face in the palms of her hands as though she wished to bury what had just happened in the past just as easily. However, the moment she closed her eyes, an image of his startled face would invade her mind, and she snapped them open once more, groaning in utter exasperation.

_I can't, _she whispered desperately to an inner self that didn't respond, _I _can't _fall. Not again. Not for _him.

It was only natural, she hurriedly contemplated as she tried to shut away the vivid image of his face, the crystal-clear details that were further enhanced or could only be seen at such proximity. She hadn't been with a boy for a long time – or actually, not at all – and being completely deprived of any common sense in her hormonal state, it was only natural that she felt the way she did.

A pang of guilt ran through her veins at maximum speed as another image of a grinning blonde, his expression turning grim as his eyes were filled to the brim with hurt, and another of a second blonde with eyes aflame with fury, surfaced in the void of her mind, which had become a jumbled mixture of dimness.

"I _can't_," she recapitulated for herself loudly.

Yet, she felt chagrin wash her like a large wave would a small stone, taking over every functional cell of her body, as she recalled how his fast reflexes had hurriedly caught her by the shoulders, keeping them at a micrometer's distance as they inhaled each other's breath, their lips almost touching – she had been able to _feel _how his lips had moved to breathe –

Shaking her head, she flushed with guilt and embarrassment at the lifelike memory. "I can't, I can't, I can't –"

"You can't what?"

Swiveling around with a start, she saw a certain blonde at the door as she realized she had not locked it after entering it. The blonde's entire figure blocking the view of the corridor, she felt her insides filling with filth, with self-contempt at having been caught in her wrongdoing, even if the person in question had been unable to read her thoughts.

"Can I come in?" Naruto asked with a slightly tired, but nonetheless kind voice as he leaned against the doorframe.

* * *

_Whoever said it's impossible to say what you've never had  
I never almost had you…_

* * *

"_I shoulda went out with you; I should've made you my boo boy, yeah that's one time… I shoulda broke the rules_ –"

Tearing away the headphones from his ears speedily, Sasuke proceeded to turn off the eye-catchingly roseate-colored iPod nano in his hands as he leaned back towards the large, temptingly soft white pillows of his bed.

_Breaking the rules_. The statement had reminded him of the afternoon, and how he had swiftly pushed her away from himself as she had drawn closer, fighting against his natural urges to instead pull her closer, to –

Wincing, he shut out the stream of unorthodox thoughts as another picture surfaced in his mind; the look of hurt and _disappointment _in her eyes as he had done so.

Had she truly wished for something to happen? Or had it just been his imagination?

_But she's with the dobe_, he reminded himself; the person in question had mysteriously left to 'get some fresh air' shortly after they had returned to the room. Ever since the little incident, he had been unsurprisingly grim – the reason was beyond Sasuke; did he not already have Sakura? Or was his wavering self-confidence overshadowing his common sense?

_Does it even matter? _he reprimanded himself frustratingly. It was _their _relationship. _Their _lives. Frankly, he had exactly nothing to do with it.

Yet, the image of the two being _together_…

He pushed it away once more as he stared beratingly at the mp3-player as though it was at fault. She had previously lent it to him prior to the flight in order for him to gain some inspiration for a love song. She did indeed have quite a few RnB ballades, but none that suited his taste.

The lyrics of the song he had been listening to earlier resurfaced in his mind along with an all-too-familiar picture, of the same face belonging to a different time; emerald eyes sparkling with joy and innocence as they had gazed down upon him. "_Sasuke-kun, can't you sing for me? You're a rockstar, and I'm a model!_"

Sasuke sat up abruptly. _No_. That belonged in the past; that girl was no longer the same Sakura his face had been millimeters away from earlier.

His eyes once again resting on the pink iPod, he decided there was only one way to reassemble his jumbled thoughts – to go to the source of all the trouble. Either way, he had a reason – he needed to return the mp3-player.

And so, snatching up the item, he abruptly headed towards the exit, his mind only bearing one intent as his steps automatically carried him towards his destination.

* * *

_Never almost had you, baby  
Said I miss you… really, really miss you…_

* * *

Many years ago, when Naruto had just been a little child, he decided pink was the most beautiful color in the world.

Although the other children at the kindergarten taunted him for his choice of favorite color, saying it was 'girlish', he personally adored it – it was a color very familiar to him, a reminder of his mother's own crimson hair with just a slight change.

And so, when he first laid eyes on Haruno Sakura, with her slightly large forehead, wide emerald eyes, slightly pouting rosy lips and perfectly straight, short pink hair, he knew she was the most beautiful girl in the world.

Sometimes, he mused sorrowfully, he missed that little girl. The child-like, innocent Sakura, who, after having been rescued from bullies by her personal heroes – none who included him – had regained her happiness; the little Sakura with the most gorgeous, joyful smile in the world.

As he surveyed her discomforted face expression and her fidgeting fingers before him now, he was reminded of the Sakura who had once cried alone in the yard, the Sakura he had been afraid to comfort because of his fear of being rejected, of being pushed away.

"You're… thinking about it, right?" he questioned slowly, struggling to keep his cool, his casual façade – as if nothing was wrong.

As if speaking of the apocalypse with the tone as one would speak of the weather.

"About what?" she inquired shrilly, her nervousness completely see-through.

"About _him_," Naruto solemnly clarified as he took a step towards her; a stream of pain surged through him as he watched her flinch at his approach. "About the kiss."

"We didn't," she breathed. "We didn't… kiss."

He paused, trying to block the image forcing into his brain; the image that had been reappearing every time he blinked ever since the incident – the image of the girl whom he loved whole-heartedly, and his best friend, staring into each other's eyes as they lay on the ground, stunned by their proximity as though nothing else existed but _them_, and he was not allowed entrance to _their _world.

(_but he _never _been allowed entrance to their world, not even before)_

"You still love him, don't you?"

The size of her eyes increased in shock, even if he knew she had been anticipating the question – nonetheless, the silence that lingered in the air was as painful as though he was being flayed alive. Chuckling darkly, he murmured, "… I knew it."

"… Naruto…," she whispered as she looked at him with eyes filled with sorrow, with pity, with the intention to _apologize_.

_Don't_, he wanted to say, _don't say you're sorry._

"It's okay," he instead answered with the feeble attempt of a smile as he took another step towards her, seating himself beside her on the bed as he held his gaze in hers

(_just like the way he wished he could hold her heart in his)_

as he spoke with a slightly unsteady, faltering voice. "It's okay. One day… one day you're gonna realize that Sasuke-teme doesn't deserve you, and that the one you love is me. It's all gonna happen, I know it. And when that day comes… I'll still be right here waiting for you."

He angled his face as he drew closer towards her, who remained unmoving. Trying not to pry into her emerald eyes, which he knew were filled with unshed tears – and not those of joy, like he had once imagined she'd cry on their first kiss – he closed the distance between them as his lips found hers, and pressuring them gently, she finally closed her eyes, a single droplet escaping her eye, tasting salt on his lips as he kissed her once more gingerly.

Yet, as he moved his lips on hers, which only responded with extreme lightness, it felt as though he was chasing something that wasn't there – holding thin air, searching for his purpose.

But his purpose was gone. The thing he had been searching for – her heart, be it the one that belonged to the petite girl that was innocence itself, or the beautiful teen in front of him silently crying – was with _him._

Her hero. Her knight in shining armor. Her _dream _prince.

And all he could do was simply dream, dream foolishly of taking _his_ place, and try to keep the princess far away from where her heart belonged.

What the princess failed to notice, however, was a certain person standing behind her in the doorway, where the door had remained slightly unclosed, revealing the couple through a gap behind which the person in question was tightly clutching a pink iPod.

* * *

_But tonight I wanna love ya..._

_

* * *

_

And that's a wrap, people! Thank God my Writer's Block has finally lifted... summer vacation's here, and next week, I'm going off to Croatia!! With a lot of parties and meeting friends coming up, I can't quite assure a new chapter soon, but I'll do my best n.n

So there was a whole lot KibaHina in this chapter (and in this fic at all) than I intended. I'm sorry if the descriptions are leaning towards melodramatic, but I didn't quite know how else to describe the feeling (I've been through the same thing as Kiba, just with a guy, and just that his personality wasn't like Hinata's).

By the way, I'm sorry I couldn't answer all reviews! x.x; I sort of forgot which ones I had answered and which ones I hadn't... sorry!!

And guys, I've gotta tell you - I L-O-V-E your reviews!!!!! You've no idea what it feels like when I read a new review, I always get so happy no matter if it's positive or negative :) So please keep on reviewing and tell me what you thought about this chapter!! Love y'all!


	8. o7: with you

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, and I'm seriously _TIRED_ of waiting for the Team 7 reunion. And oh, I don't own Linkin Park's song "WitH You" either.**

* * *

Haven't you, at some point in your life, wished you could just run away?

(_Without having to care about the consequences, or the money, or the luggage – just _DOING_ it)_

Leave all your problems behind, throw everything away, and start anew?

(_Get rid of all those feelings and thoughts you don't want to have)_

I have. I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that life's been a piece of cake for me.

(_Piece of cake? More, like, piece of _cement._ Or, dog shit which has hardened like cement with mould-covered, stinking French cheese. Ew.)_

But I'm not going to be Miss Whine and tell you how much it sucked, either.

(_Because let's face it, no matter how much you hate your life, there's always someone who has it worse than you, just like there's always someone who has it better than you_)

Because every time I've wanted to run away, every time I just wanted to throw this burden off my shoulders and fly without wings, there's something that keeps me back.

(_"Where're you going, Sakura?_")

So, learn the lesson, folks.

(_"Don't cry._")

You can wish as much as you want that you could run away, or even learn the ability to fly without having wings,

(_"Why did you bring me here?_")

but you can't run away from where your heart is.

(_"Because you said you wanted to fly._")

* * *

**o7.**

For as long as Naruto could remember, he had always wished he could fly.

With Naruto being Naruto, it was of course in the literal sense. When he was younger, he had dreamt of being a ninja, being able to be so defy the laws of gravity by soaring between the roofs, defeating villains with his smooth movements.

And now… well, it was still the same.

But as he stared down at the ground from the seat next to the petite, egg-shaped window beside him, at the gleaming lights of New York he was leaving behind, at the ground far below which seemed an eternity away from his current location – he realized something.

No matter where he flew, no matter where he decided to escape – his problems would always be with him. Like a little dark cloud above his head in a comic or in a cartoon, with little lighting bolts and tiny, occasional rain showers; but to be more precise, it felt more like a pair of weights never removed from his shoulders, and he was _tired _of slumping.

He was further reminded of this as he glanced at the occupant of the seat beside him; Uchiha Sasuke, the co-founder and lead singer/guitarist of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, renowned 'hottie' and one of Japan's top teen celebrities, not to mention his roommate, childhood best friend and almost-brother, was looking straight ahead of him with a blank face.

It was no surprise, actually. Sasuke's face was, twenty-three hours and fifty-nine minutes of the day, devoid of emotion. But while his appearance remained aloof, his eyes didn't show detachment; instead of being cold and undecipherable, like the flat surface of an obsidian stone, they were filled with _something_ – something that obviously troubled him, as he wore a light frown on his face.

Not that Naruto would admit he'd ever notice such things about his arch-rival, but he _had _been Sasuke's best friend ever since they were six years old and accidentally smooched each other in kindergarten after all.

(Although that subject was obviously taboo for both of them.)

Not to mention he had seen that expression in his eyes all too much, and always for the same reason…

_Sakura_.

The mention of her name echoed in his mind like a hollow void, and he stifled a dry laugh; it was ironical how even when Sasuke had sworn not to even mention her name again, he'd still have that strange look in his eyes he only reserved for _her_.

And it was all because of Ino's brilliant mastermind _plan_.

Naruto didn't know if he should feel grateful or disapproving; he had been dying to get his friends back together in the same room without creating an atmosphere of tension thick enough to be divided by a knife, but he also didn't wish to see the girl he had had feelings for since he was six years old to be snatched away when she was finally within his reach.

(_although he knew she had never been in his reach to begin with_)

He wasn't blind. He might be considered stupid, but he was unfocused and inattentive; but he was observant when it came to _them_. He had seen the gradual change in Sasuke, how he had seemed more relaxed as of lately, and even – impossibly enough – slightly _happier_ (at least if one counted his increased sarcastic wit as happiness), not to mention the slight glimmer of guilt whenever Sakura was mentioned. The occasional, instinctive flinch at the sight of him and Sakura together, followed by disgust, had evolved into a more frequent, slight scowl.

Sakura was, of course, even more transparent. Her guilt was like venom to him; her kindness summoned by it, and the sorrow in her eyes, was like torture – he wished that she'd at least be more unashamed. If she at least didn't _show_ it, not put it up for his eyes to see as clearly as if she had been waving a sign with '_I love Sasuke_' written across it with little pink hearts in front of him.

He glanced sideways at the person in question; Sasuke still held a steadfastly bizarre gaze in his eyes, a jumbled mixture of different emotions Naruto was unable to tell apart. His eyes flickered occasionally to the pinkette, and one emotion became clearer than anything else – _worry_.

Naruto had seen it plenty of times before. When they were younger, Sasuke had been as paranoid and overprotective when it came to Sakura; even though he'd never show it to anyone, it was obvious to Naruto the way he easily became irritated when it came to things that'd be any kind of damage to her, even if it meant that she instilled it on her own.

And now… history had chosen to repeat, painfully, brutally, before him, rewinding the past Naruto had once cherished – and already decided to put behind.

"She's alright," he remarked brusquely, causing Sasuke to jump slightly in his seat as he snapped his head to look at him; "She's not half as fragile as you make her seem."

He knew he was being a hypocrite; he had been just as anxious about her state of mind, even more so than usual due to the event last night

(_the feeling of her lips, even if they had seemed like those belonging to a dead or unconscious person, still lingered on his)_

and it had more or less made him fret in exaggerated worry when he had seen the bags underneath her eyes; her frizzled, shine-less hair; the way she sagged when she walked, like a zombie fresh from a bad horror movie; her dull, glum eyes…

"I don't get what the hell you're talking about, dobe," he retorted irritably, having momentarily forgotten the guilt he had previously displayed before.

"I'm talking about Sakura-chan," replied Naruto in a slow pace as though Sasuke was mentally challenged. "You're like a mother hen, bastard."

"I'm not," he protested, turning away as he regained his cool composure. He added with an almost _too_ convincing tone; "I don't care about her at all. We've a strict business-based relationship."

"Business-based," he echoed, acting dumb. "What business would that be?"

Silence fell, before the Uchiha replied in his low, baritone voice, "Nothing that should be any of your concern."

Shrugging carelessly – although he knew Sasuke could not see it, as his gaze was fixed steadfastly on his feet – he turned towards the window. Outside, there was nothing but darkness, and the eventual blur of a cloud darting past them speedily. "Really."

They both became quiet anew, none of them speaking a word as Naruto stared out of the window, trying to at least make out an outline, or even the indication of a blurry shape, in the dark. Not even the slightest glimmer of light found its way to his azure orbs. Sasuke remained stationary, in the same pose as earlier, leering intently at his white, worn sneakers.

"It's funny, y'know. You always used to care so much… _too _much. Hey, you remember that time when Lee confessed to her in the schoolyard? And you acted all cool, and then when Sakura had left, you threatened to break his nose, and he beat the crap out of you with that kick?"

A snorting laughter escaped Naruto's lips, but it was hollow; as fake as his façade. As their all facades.

"You're still like that, I guess. Pretending not to care… and then you do. Right?"

No reply came at first. Then, slowly, barely audibly, but still clearly – "No."

"Oh. So you don't. You _don't _care about her," he enunciated clearly, Sasuke's wince not escaping his vision. "You don't care about Sakura-chan at all."

He knew he was torturing him. But he needed to open his eyes. Naruto was on the verge of being desperate; he felt for using one of those large hammers they always used in cartoons, whack Sasuke on the head so stars and birds would whirl around his forehead, and scream, 'Wake up, you idiot! Don't you see? Don't you see that the one she wants is _you_ and not me? I'm fucking tired of being your substitute!'

It was not a self-sacrifice at all, really. It was on the other hand, rather selfish.

Proceeding with his speech, he nodded as though he had just confirmed his theory. "Yeah, now you're all cold and stuff. More of an ice block than you used to be, even. It's like you treat her like thin air… or worse, like she's… _bad _air, or something. Poor Sakura-chan. But I guess… you've your bastard-y reasons, right, teme?"

Perhaps, he convinced himself, he was really evil. Maybe he just wanted Sasuke to fall in love with her, and then snatch her away just the way he had robbed him of Sakura

(_except that Sakura had never been his at all, only _his)

or maybe he wished that if he were to be heartbroken, then everybody else should be, too.

As no reply came from Sasuke, he continued; "But don't worry, teme. Or well – not that you do, but still. Sakura-chan's in safe hands. She's with me, ne? That's a million times better than you. She smiles a lot more than she does before now that she's with me."

The intensity of that lie was so much - as was its desire for it to be true – that it seemed to burn every cell of his body. She was _never _happy – perhaps she'd smile, or laugh, at his jokes, but it seemed so meek, so _empty_, that it was almost like it wasn't there at all. And then, just in the middle of his most enthusiastic attempt to engage her in a conversation, she'd gain that distant look in her eyes that told him she was thinking of _him_.

As he watched the reaction of his speech, he was unsurprised at Sasuke's density when it came to Sakura's feelings; his eyes were slightly wide at his remark, obviously believing it to be correct. Sakura _had _smiled more recently – but not because of Naruto, and so the latter knew, but because of _Sasuke_.

But that, the person in question didn't know.

"You always made sure before that I never looked at her in the wrong way," he pondered aloud thoughtfully. "That I never touched her, or came too close. When I did, you always looked like you wanted to… tear off my arm and eat it, or something. Now you don't complain when we're together… when we're holding hands, or when I'm having my arm around her. Or when I _kiss _her."

Or perhaps, he mused further on his previous mental discussion sadly, perhaps he wasn't selfish after all – maybe he was simply too engrossed in the past to let go.

If things were like before, it'd be so much easier. He could go back to having a crush on Sakura, and nothing more – his feelings wouldn't overwhelm him the way they did now, like incontrollable ocean waves in a storm – and knowing that she belonged together with Sasuke, and the two of them could bicker just like they used to, and he'd watch Sakura and Sasuke look at each other in a way that signalized that they were in a different world _he_ didn't belong to, and he'd feel comfortable with it – proud, almost.

But even now, when Sakura finally was his – but still not – and Sasuke was with Ino, he knew they still belonged together.

They had strangely enough just not realized it yet.

_Although it's pretty weird that they haven't,_ he thought as he watched Sasuke's face contort into a, mildly put, distasteful grimace. Naruto wondered if he was even aware of what he thought of Sakura anymore.

_But then again…, _he added in his mind, hiding a wince as he recalled the event that had taken place in the Uchiha mansion unbeknownst to him – he had been informed of it later – almost four years ago. _I guess I can see why._

"But you did look pretty flabbergasted when I kissed her there, didn't you, bastard?"

_But it's time to let go,_ he told himself, and Sasuke as well, inwardly, as he gazed intently into the boy's startled eyes – although Sasuke was hard to read, Naruto had been with him for too long, and he could make out the outline, the _shape_, of his obvious displeasure – and hidden irritation – at his remark in the darkness of his orbs.

And as he inwardly flew further up in the sky, spreading his wings wide into the chilly darkness, he could feel some of his burden finally lighten from his shoulders.

* * *

_Forgot all about yesterday  
Remembering I'm pretending to be  
Where I'm not anymore_

* * *

Hyuuga Hinata had never been one of many words.

That much was obvious – she was known as the typical shy, innocent schoolgirl (no matter how the tabloids described her as a Japanese party girl akin to Paris Hilton), with a politeness that clearly marked her position as the heiress of the renowned Hyuuga Corporation and the cousin of the famed Hyuuga Neji, drummer of _Konoha's Golden Leaf._

Even when socializing with the ones closest to her out of the gang – Kiba and Tenten – she didn't speak too much, although she excelled better speaking abilities with them than with anybody else, due to the fact that they stifled her constant nervousness.

So being placed next to the few-worded Hatake Kakashi, the manager of said band, was to her a relief as she knew she wouldn't have to struggle to keep up a conversation, in comparison to if she had, for example, been placed next to Ino.

_(a__lthough she _was_ a bit disappointed she wasn't next to _him)

Instead, she chose to ponder about the current situation of the four that had returned from the advertisement video shoot, acting utterly bizarre; at dinner, they had been strangely quiet, in particular Sasuke, whose stream of sarcasm had been drained due to unknown reasons – even the two loud blondes were more solemn than usual, although Naruto had at least strained himself to keep up conversation.

She didn't know the details, and upon asking Neji, had only received the simple answer to leave their own problems to themselves, as they were old enough to deal with them on their own.

But the somewhat _vacant _look in Naruto's azure eyes - which were usually almost _too _full with the glimmer of mischief, enthusiasm and _life – _worried her.

"'Trouble shared is trouble halved'," the silver-haired man spoke up beside her suddenly, startling her; but his voice was soft and gentle.

"Lee Iacocca," she replied automatically, slightly confused, but her cheeks slightly reddening at the idea of speaking up.

"You know your quotes." He looked up from his orange book with a smile tugging underneath his usual white surgical mask. "As expected from a Hyuuga."

Blushing slightly, she bowed her head. "My father ensures me that education is of great importance, and knowing famous quotes is part of it."

"Hmm… then I guess you've heard of, 'to mourn and bewail your ill-fortune, when you will gain a tear from those who listen, this is worth the trouble'?"

"Aeschylus. Th-the Greek p-poet," she supplied informatively, slightly falling back into her usual stuttering pattern. Catching his meaningful left eye's gaze, realization dawned upon her on what he was asking of her to do. Smiling kindly, she added with as steady a voice as she could muster; "But I don't have any ill-fortune to bewail, Hatake-san."

"Really, now? You _do _seem troubled." He tapped his fingers against his armrest, then put his chin in the palm of his hand as he propped up his elbow on it, glancing sideways at her with an amused calm. "Love trouble, maybe?"

Hinata's face flashed as crimson as a traffic light as she didn't meet his gaze. "A-absolutely n-not, H-H-Hatake-san," she couldn't help but stammer.

Her nervousness made him further interested in the case. An impish grin forming onto his face behind the mask, he prodded; "Really now? It doesn't have anything to do with… Naruto, does it?"

"N-N-N-Naruto-kun?!" she burst out, appalled and looking very much horrified as her scarlet face snapped upwards to meet his gaze, "N-no! Definitely… n-no!"

"Oh, I see…" Kakashi drummed a finger thoughtfully against his chin, clearly enjoying the entertainment. "So… it must be… Kiba?"

"K-Kiba-kun? N-no! We're just fr-friends!" she exclaimed, looking simply terrified – her astonishment was transparent, as well, mixed with a bit of puzzlement at his suggestion.

_So she doesn't know, _he concluded with a smirk. _Interesting._

"It can't be Sasuke, can it? Or Neji… but he's your cousin. Ah, forbidden love…" He looked off into the distance as he ignored Hinata's spluttered protests. "I know. It must be Neji! I can see it so clearly in front of me…"

Staring into thin air with a dreamy expression, he imitated Neji's darker baritone voice, "'I never stopped thinking about you. About us. And when I heard you were back… I started to hope. But then… I found out about your mask.'"

Pausing dramatically, he adapted an apparently more feminine and high-pitched voice; "'It's just a symbol, Neji.'

'No. This is your mask. Your real face is the one criminals now fear. The woman I loved – the woman who vanished – she never came back at all. But maybe she's still out there, somewhere. Maybe someday, when Gotham no longer needs you, I'll see her again.'

And then you'll put on your black mask and fly away into the night with your black mantle swishing behind you like wings of the night…"

"I'm n-n-not Batman!" Hinata half-shrieked, panicked beyond imagination. "And I'm not in l-l-love with N-N-N-Neji-onii-san!"

"No?" Kakashi blinked innocently. "How about Spiderman? 'She's saved my life twice, and I've never seen her face…'"

"N-no! I'm n-not in l-love! Not at a-a-all!" Hinata argued wildly, gesturing with her hands frantically in denial.

"Youths these days," sighed Kakashi deeply with mournful eyes. "Here you're supposed to enjoy the springtime of youth, and you don't even take a chance... why is that so, Hinata-san? Why? Why are you so emotionally incapable? And why am I stuck with you uninteresting, gloomy bunch?" he wailed, burying his face into his hands.

"U-um… I-I'm s-sorry?" she apologized unsurely as she clapped his shoulder comfortingly.

"I want to see love! Drama! _Action_!" He swept his hands theatrically. "Look around you! Here you are, a bunch of good-looking girls and boys, perfectly ready to create a teenage version of Icha Icha Paradise… and then you're completely _lacking _hormones!"

He paused temporarily, and then; "I want to see catfights! Tears! _Sex_!" he bellowed, causing Hinata to jump slightly. "Lust after each other! Find the passion in life… find the want to have sex with each other, be it in a traditional bed or in a toilet… do you not want that, Hinata-san? Do you not wish to have sex with somebody, say, on the airplane toilet with… for example, _Naruto_?"

The person in question looked like she was on the verge of fainting. "I… um… I-I…"

Trying to hide the mischievous glint in his eyes, he continued passionately; "To be able to create a perfect scene from Icha Icha Paradise… wouldn't that be perfection? Look, here -," he turned a page in the orange book. "See? It's graphic enough. See the way they're kissing – exploring each other's mouths with their tongues – running their hands through each other's hair and body – and –"

"I-uh-um-I-I-"

"Or are you saying," said Kakashi, calming down slightly as he tried not to laugh, looking into her eyes gravely, "that the other boys – and _Naruto_ – are not good enough for you?"

"W-wha-no, um, I-"

"Are you saying," he repeated once more, looking very much sorrowful as he did so, "that Naruto-_kun_ is not… ah… sexy enough? Perhaps… his mouth is not quite as… kissable as you'd like it to be? His clothes not so tearable… his _body _not so desirable…"

As he watched the Hyuuga heiress' eyes spin speedily in their sockets as she could merely spout stuttering nonsense as her face turned a worrying shade of scarlet, Kakashi was well aware of the death that awaited him when Neji found out.

"His _penis _not so… TOUCHABLE?"

But that didn't mean he could have his share of fun while it lasted.

* * *

_I woke up in a dream today  
To the cold of the static  
And put my cold feet on the floor  
_

* * *

'_Don't fall in love, Ino.'_

The words echoed in the blonde's mind as she tried to shut them out in vain. It was like they invaded the most private part of her conscious, sneaking past the locks and chains with which she protected it, and _dirtying _her from within – it was like there were indelible, filthy stains of suspicion, of despair, of _mistrust_ filling her that she wished to claw out.

'_Love is like flying, you know. When you finally have the right to call the one you love "yours"… it's like spreading your wings and soaring high above, looking at the ground below and not feeling the slightest fear. It's such an addictive, _delusional _feeling…'_

_**Please just shut up, **_she wanted to scream to the voice surfacing from her memories. _**I don't want to listen. Just shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up**_

'_It's like a dream you never want to wake up from. But you're bound to wake up sooner or later… you can't live in a dream forever. But when you do… it hurts, you know. It just hurts more to fall when you're high above, than if you never flew to begin with.'_

_**shut up shut up shut up shut up shut up**_

'_And the worst thing is, you can't let go. You can't let go of the fact that you once had your wings, that you once lived in a dream, and you're _dying _to feel it again… not to mention the sorrow when it gets snatched away from you…'_

_**don't wanna hear it don't wanna don't wanna don't wanna**_

'_So Ino… don't fall in love. Please.'_

_**SHUT UP**_

"Tea? Or coffee? Miss?"

The voice of the flight attendant drew Ino back to reality with an unpleasantly strong force, as she blinked at her in confusion, as though having just snapped out of a trance – which she more or less had done. "I'm sorry?"

"Tea or coffee?" the flight attendant repeated, a tiny bit of her impatience leaking through her carefully collected, professional façade.

"I'll have neither," was the reply that automatically came from her lips as she struggled to regain her calm composure. "But could I've a Diet Coke, please?"

"I'm afraid that we don't have any Diet Coke on board. Would you like to have anything else, miss?"

"Cola Zero? Sprite Zero? Fanta Zero? Diet 7Up?"

"I'm sorry, miss, but we don't have any of these drinks. Perhaps water?"

"Yes, make that a non-fizz mineral water, natural, with a slice of lemon in it and two ice cubes, please," supplied Ino habitually.

"And for the miss by the window?"

Her eyes traveled towards the person in question; Sakura seemed to be deep in thought as she gazed dazedly out of the window, her eyes unfocused. She was obviously bothered by _something_ – even without Ino's first-hand experience of knowing the pinkette for approximately 10 years, one would've noticed it.

Her neck-length, roseate hair was frizzled and uncombed; no makeup adorned her face – although it surely would've made her look less like a zombie, what with the dark circles underneath her jade eyes – and she was dressed all-too-casually for the first class flight in a loose, white t-shirt with the picture of a cat's head on the front, as well as a pair of old Nike sweats Ino knew she used to wear in PE when they were in 7th grade, and her usual white sneakers. One would've thought that her appearance from the previous afternoon was a mere illusion.

"Miss?" the flight attendant called out, slightly louder.

"Sakura," Ino called, slapping her arm gently. The pinkette's head swiveled in her direction abruptly, a look of utter surprise plastered onto her face – almost as if Ino had just stated that Sasuke's favorite pastime hobby was to do his duty as a proud girl scout and sell cookies in the neighborhood.

"What would you like to have, miss? Tea, coffee, or perhaps something else?"

"Um… Coke, please," she answered warily.

"I don't have any Coke with me at the moment," the flight attendant announced as she searched her cart. "But perhaps Pepsi? Or would you like me to fetch Coke for you, miss?"

"No, that's fine." Sakura crinkled her nose. "Nothing for me, thanks."

The flight attendant poured Ino her desired beverage as she continued with her cart down the aisle, as the corners of Ino's lips twitched somewhat. "You're still hung up on that, huh?"

Ever since they had been quite young, Sakura had always claimed that there was a difference between Pepsi and Coke – something Ino was entirely positive was impossible, since nobody else had ever been able to make the same discovery. However, her best friend had still insisted on only drinking Coke, as she found Pepsi 'disgusting'.

"Pepsi _does _taste different. And it's gross," the pinkette retorted, as a thousand times before.

The feeling of relief washed over Ino like a much wanted shower on somebody who had been in the heat of the desert for a long time; she felt her own tension decrease, replaced by a relaxation she had desired; the familiarity of the gesture had donned her a sense of security, of _safety_ – until she glanced sideways, and saw the same absent-minded expression on her face again.

The smile that had been threatening to be unleashed faded away; even without her voicing her thoughts aloud, she already knew what was on Sakura's mind – a name all-too-familiar, and all-too-acquainted with their thoughts – with their _hearts_ – for the two of them.

_Uchiha Sasuke._

Per usual, the mention of his name – even in her own mind – filled her with a warmth from within, slowly spreading to every cell of her body like ripples, like the way a hot bubble bath did to her when she felt stressed out, or drinking hot (sugar-free) chocolate a cold winter's day; the swell of pride in her chest when she remembered that she was _his _and he was _hers_ – and as of recently, a growing feeling of anxiety, as though she was waiting for something dreadful to happen at any given moment.

The anxiety was tormenting her – it was the kind that awoke her in the middle of the night, like an annoying song that just refused to get out of her head, and worse – it was almost like the song was tearing her up. She felt as though she desperately needed to do _something _– something to not lose what was precious to her, and yet, she didn't know what it was.

Or rather, she knew what it was, but couldn't do anything about it.

That kind of fear reminded her of the time when her father and mother had gone through a tough phase; her father had been unfaithful, and the entire family, as well as Sakura, had found out – and she had gone about carrying the same nagging worry with her during that time, worry for being split apart, worry for _losing _everything.

Worry for being hurt. Again.

And as pathetic and unbelievable as it sounded for Yamanaka Ino, supermodel and party princess extraordinaire and one of Japan's renowned teenage beauty queens, as well as the most popular girl in school – worry for being lonely.

Although her parents had been able to survive that phase, leaving behind a couple of scars in their relationship neither of them wished to speak of, she had continued to carry the same worry when Sasuke had disappeared; not because of her feelings, which were basically non-existent at the time, but because of the hurt it caused Naruto, not to mention Sakura – particularly the latter one looked as though she'd slip away at any given moment, and Ino was incapable of keeping her in place.

The anxiety had finally vanished upon dating Sasuke – replaced by immense joy, an almost surreal euphoria which had slowly come to its death when it dawned upon her that he was not as passionate about her as she was about him – an euphoria which had once again been revived thanks to the pinkette's tutoring sessions with her boyfriend.

An euphoria which she could still summon, whenever she thought of the little thrills it gave her when Sasuke impulsively took her hand, or complimented her.

_Don't fall in love, Ino,_ her mother's voice plagued her in such a pleading tone that the happiness caused by the thought of Sasuke was ripped apart into barely existent pieces.

But it was, to her grief, the same thing which caused her anxiety to be born anew. As she recalled the events of the photo shoot the day before as she had done countless times since it had happened, she tried to shut out the way Sasuke's eyes had seemed to be irrevocably _captured _by _her_ presence, the reluctance barely showed in the way he had shoved her away, and the _hurt_ in Sakura's eyes as he had done so.

_It's like a dream you never want to wake up from. But you're bound to wake up sooner or later… you can't live in a dream forever,_ her mother's voice chanted once more as it had done that night when Ino had cradled her in her arms as though she was the mother, and her mother was the child – and her mother had cried herself to sleep, whilst her father packed his belongings in the other room, quietly sobbing.

_No. __**No**_, she countered forcefully against her doubts. _I'm not my mother, and Sasuke is not my father._

She stifled a wince as she recalled the look in her mother's eyes, which she could only associate with the word _broken_ – Ino had never been one to paint with words – and her father's bright azure orbs, mirroring hers, but filled to the brim – and more so – with indescribable _guilt _and _sorrow_.

_And most importantly, Sakura is not _that _woman._

Hatred streamed in her veins like venom at the thought of the red-haired woman, who had been considerably younger than her mother – smirking triumphantly as she had waited for her father to leave their home with his suitcase.

Before she was aware of what she was doing herself, her mouth had moved to speak. "Do you remember… what my dad did in 8th grade?"

Sakura froze. "Yes," she mumbled in reply.

"Do you remember what I said back then?" she continued to ask, stubbornly, but in a low voice that was quite uncharacteristic for her usual, loud self.

A pause. And then, "Yes."

"'I don't believe in love. It's all a load of crap'," Ino stated flatly."Do you know who made me believe in it again?"

"Sasuke." The name escaped from her lips in a mere whisper.

"Yes." Her tone softened at the topic. "He made me realize that fairy-tales and Princes actually exist. He made me believe that _love _exists. And… he sees parts of me I don't show to anyone else – okay, anyone else but you – and… he understands me. And cares for me, even when he knows all of my bad sides."

She knew the last part was not the truth and only a wish she hoped to come true with immeasurable desperation, yet she felt instinctively the necessity of making it seem true – perhaps it was out of a mere habit of her to lie about their relationship, or maybe it was simply because she _needed_ it to be true. At least, for the time being.

"I've finally regained the faith I've been wanting someone to prove to me that I could have," she spoke – this time with honesty that scared her to the point that her voice was trembling, "and I want to keep it."

Silence fell once more. Sakura remained unmoving, as she merely stared at her best friend, her eyes undecipherable, her face devoid of emotion. "Right now, me and Sasuke-kun are going through some tough times – well, you of all people should know," she added with a tiny, emotionless laugh, "but I really don't want you to be _too _attached to him now when you're helping us out, if you know what I mean."

Sakura flinched visibly, her gaze still unwavering and beyond Ino's comprehension as the blonde continued; "You and I both know that the two of you have… _are_… history. And I don't know about the two of you, but _I _don't want history to repeat again."

_You don't have to ask me, Ino. He and I are history, _Sakura's words repeated themselves in her mind – and Ino was sure they did in hers, too – like they had one and half a year prior when she had asked for her consent to date _him_.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Ino," said the pinkette slowly and clearly. "But if you're talking about me and _him_, there's nothing to worry about. If nothing else, I'll promise to keep my distance."

"Thank you." The award-winning, cover-girl smile Yamanaka Ino was renowned for finally surfaced. "I hope it can all go back to how it was before… with a little improvement, of course. Me and Sasuke will be more passionate, more romantic, more _in love_ before… and it'll be all thanks to you, Sakura. Thank you. Really."

No response at first. And then, "You're welcome, Ino."

It was alright, she convinced herself. Everything was just the way it was supposed to be. She and Sasuke were in love, and so were Sakura and Naruto. Their happy endings were guaranteed; now it was just to live their separate, yet intertwined fairy-tales.

It was just as it was supposed to be.

Just as she had pictured it all those years ago as a child, when the four of them had still been playing rockstars and models.

And now, there was a rockstar and a model – and that was her and Sasuke.

Just like she had always dreamed.

And the happiness caused by the dream come true was almost too much, the euphoria making her feel as though she'd go crazy with joy at any given moment. As though she was soaring in the air with wings that had been given to her by _him_, and the feeling of being weightless, of defying gravity was miraculous, stunning, simply _amazing_ – almost bordering on ridiculous, like something from a child's daydream.

And yet, despite everything

(_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry)_

the ebony guilt penetrated every fiber of her being like sharp needles, and held her to the concrete ground below defiantly, like strings made of steel

(_I'm sorry that I'm selfish)_

and she felt as though she wanted to wash it out, like ink stains on an ivory evening gown – and the need to speak the words aloud was almost too much for her to bear –

(_I'm sorry that I can't be you)_

but she kept them locked up deep inside; the apology that she held within.

But exactly why she felt like she needed to apologize, she didn't quite know.

* * *

_A little taste of hypocrisy  
And I'm left in the wake of the mistake  
Slow to react_

* * *

"She's feeling better now," informed the dark-haired Hyuuga bodyguard beside him, breaking the tense silence as he turned a page in the latest issue of _New York Times_, white orbs scanning through an article about the recent financial crisis.

Inuzuka Kiba, the (unfortunate) occupant of the seat beside the speaker's, merely arched an eyebrow. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because judging by that face expression of yours, surely you're working that feeble mind of yours at top speed, trying to figure out the current mood of Hinata-sama," he responded smoothly.

"'Feeble mind'… wow, if I haven't said it already, Neji, you seem like one helluva nice guy to me," remarked the dog-lover in response, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Not to mention one of the most modest people I know."

"I'm only speaking of the truth. The level of your intelligence, however, is not the matter at hand. Hinata-sama has shown signs of being more lighthearted than earlier since your little rendezvous the previous afternoon, which in turn means that you've less reason to randomly liberate your bottled up rage at innocent victims, me included. If any ill-will should surface, I'd rather you keep it to yourself, and if a need to emancipate it would occur, my advice would be for you to release the burden unto nobody but yourself."

Kiba merely stared at him in response. "Dude, are you telling me you want me to _hurt_ myself? Geez, martial arts and Death Note really isn't a good combo for your emo brain."

"My pastime activities and personality type has nothing to do with the fact that you need to be more in control of your own emotions – I'm merely informing you of possible ways to benefit the group with a decreased chance to quarrel further with each other, not to mention saving you from future guilt produced by your actions. And more importantly, Death Note is a highly educational piece of graphic literature, depicting the present-day view on the supernatural and unexplainable."

"'Benefit the group'? 'Saving me from future guilt'? Hey, wait… are you actually telling me you're _not_ a robot from a real-life _Terminator_ transported back into the past with some freaky mission, but actually a _human_?" exclaimed Kiba. "And also… 'highly educational piece of graphic literature'? Aren't you just using it as an excuse 'cause you've a secret fetish for horror stuff?"

"I'm as humanoid as any other human. And I do _not _have a fetish for 'horror stuff'," he threw back coolly.

"Yeah, like me and the others don't know how you basically own every horror movie ever produced. You basically _drooled _when we were watching _The Ring_."

"I. Do. Not. _Drool_," the Hyuuga enunciated through gritted teeth.

Kiba rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. You still have a fetish for horror stuff."

"I'm merely fascinated by the public reaction created when facing supernatural events –"

"Yeah, and _that_'s why you totally hurled that huge batch of popcorn at Naruto's head when he wouldn't shut up during _One Missed Call_."

"I was simply examining the speed popcorn can travel through the air at such proximity. I –"

"Oh, I get it now," the other burst out, snapping his fingers with a look that suggested that he had received an epiphany; Kiba imagined that if it had been a cartoon, a light bulb would've visualized above his head. "You're a masochist!"

"_What_?" the masochist in question snarled, his eyes narrowing viciously.

"That explains _everything_. Why you're such a detached human ice cube, why you act like you're PMS-ing all the time, why you're so into horror stuff, why you like Tenten –"

"Tenten? What does she have to do with any of this?" Neji snapped, looking even more aggravated than before as his eyes bulged dangerously in their sockets.

"Well, obviously 'cause she's like a shemale, you know. The one with the pants in the relationship. And I bet'cha she's a sadist – oh, that's why she's so obsessed with all this weapon stuff. But man, I never thought you'd be into letting her use them on you… I mean, what's wrong with normal sex?"

"I – you – that -," he sputtered, his face growing a nasty shade of purple as a smirk slowly bared itself on Kiba's lips, revealing rows of fang-like, animalistic teeth. "I do not _understand _the logic that the bunch of you possess. How you possibly manage to involve _her_ in every single context – and always with the same purpose… the relation between Tenten and I is strictly platonic and business-based, as it is between any other pair of fellow bodyguards. We're professionals. For you to suggest that we'd go as far as to –" His face color darkened further, "- submit to _raw lust_ –"

"Thank you," said Kiba suddenly, interjecting his fellow drummer's furious, and uncharacteristically rapid speech.

"For what?" he growled gruffly.

"For using your freakish 'I'm-an-emotionless-robot' way to show your concern earlier," he responded casually as he twisted his Sony earphones around his fingers with swift, circling movements, swinging them like some kind of miniature lasso. "You told me that Hinata was okay so that I wouldn't worry, right?"

"Lessening the chance of causing conflict simplifies cooperation, which in turn is essential in order for continued socializing –"

"Okay, dude, I don't need a PowerPoint presentation with graphs about it, too," Kiba cut across him with slight annoyance. "Anyway… thanks for caring."

Neji turned quiet, his eyes blank as his gaze rested at the seat before him, his newspaper abandoned in his hands. "If she were to see you troubled… she'd worry, as well."

Surprise registered onto the previous' face, before his eyes softened somewhat. "So you _do _care."

Silence. Then, "If I were to say that after spending such an amount of time together without developing the slightest attachment, I'd not be human."

"Which wouldn't surprise me," the dog-lover muttered inaudibly under his breath, before raising the volume of his voice slightly; "I thought you were hating on her 'cause of your grudge with Hiashi, and all of that crap?"

"Whilst my resentment against Hiashi-sama will perhaps never cease to exist –" Neji's expression darkened at the mention of his name, eyes turning to slits, "- it is perhaps not of utmost justice to pass on that hatred onto Hinata-sama."

"Yeah." Silence captivated the two once more, but this time it settled in a more relaxed atmosphere, the two of them both deep in thought, until Kiba's lips quirked upwards into a devilish smirk. "So you lust after Tenten, huh?"

_

* * *

_

It's true the way I

_feel  
Was promised by your face_

* * *

" – of course, that position isn't quite as easy to handle. You know, you should try kamasutra - or maybe it's too hard for beginners. Hey, you know, doing it on a table wouldn't be half-bad –"

It was, in Hatake Kakashi's opinion, beyond just plain enjoyable to make the poor Hyuuga heiress suffer from all-too-graphic fantasies of her and a certain blonde loudmouth.

(To be entirely truthful, he was actually just the _slightest _bit proud of being a minor sadist. However, he excused himself with the fact that he was educating the blissfully unaware youth)

"- or perhaps standing up. I've heard that it should double the pleasure when you're in the shower… or maybe the airplane toilet, if your feelings are too uncontainable at the moment –"

"I-I d-d-don't have s-s-such feelings for N-Naruto-k-kun! N-not at a-all!" the Hyuuga heiress piped up, looking as though she was doing so with great effort.

"No? So you're saying that… when you see him, you feel nothing?" Kakashi questioned, dead-serious.

Inhaling deeply, she looked him straight in the eye and responded with a voice she desperately tried not faltering with, "Yes. Nothing."

"Ah. I understand now." Nodding as his forefinger tapped the side of his chin as he grasped it with his left hand in mock deep thought, he tried to hide his amusement as he saw the look of surprise, yet apparent relief, that registered onto the Hyuuga heiress' face.

_Oh no, _he spoke to himself mentally with an evil cackle, _I'm not letting you off that easy._

"Realization has dawned upon me like the light that blessed the Jedis when Anakin Skywalker was discovered to be the Chosen One. Like how Anakin slowly gained knowledge from the wise Obi-Wan Kenobi, so have I slowly gained knowledge of the truth…," drawled Kakashi, doing vivid, circling gestures as he stared at thin air with a dreamy face expression, as though he was looking at someplace far away.

"I… I-I'm sorry?" Hinata replied, her tone insinuating transparent confusion.

"The truth," he droned on, exclaiming the two words at such volume that it made his (unfortunate) neighbor jump slightly, "I do solemnly and sincerely and truly declare and affirm that I will tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. And that is…"

Halting in his speech dramatically, he lowered his gaze as he hid a smile. Stifling the laughter threatening to emit from his mouth, he once again spoke triumphantly; "… that you _**secretly**_ LUST after Naruto!"

"W-w-what?!" The words escaped her lips in a shocked cry, a fiery blush spreading across her cheeks again.

"Yes…when you think of him, you feel your insides burn with passion… when you see him, you just want to hold him close to you and make him _entirely _yours… to touch every single _part_ of him…. oh, yes…" Kakashi smiled euphorically. "Such unavoidable, sinful, forbidden lust, almost to be compared to the one of which Dumbledore held for Harry Potter…"

"D-D-DUMBLEDORE DIDN'T S-S-S-SECRETLY L-L-L-L-L-LUST AFTER H-HARRY! AND N-N-NEITHER D-D-DO I!" she sputtered frantically, her white eyes spinning nervously around in panic in their sockets.

"But of course." He faked an expression of utter astonishment as he froze with his hands mid-air in another of his lively gestures. "You don't secretly lust after Harry. You secretly lust after _Naruto_. Unless… you want to do… _roleplay_?"

Her eyes bulged dangerously as Kakashi desperately fought his urges to laugh out loud. Instead, he chose to continue; "Yes, yes. Naruto in… ah, what did they say was Dumbledore's garments in Harry Potter? 'Long robes, a purple cloak which swept the ground and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles…' Seems to fit into the context pretty well. Now, see, we can easily trick him into those clothes – we'll just say that you've always thought he'd be sexy in wizard clothes – but it might be more difficult with the white wig and the fake beard…"

"N-N-N-N-N-NO! N-n-no! I-I'm s-s-sorry, K-Kakashi-s-san, b-but… n-no!" she yelled uncharacteristically loudly, gaining quite a few stares as she turned a deeper crimson.

"No? Well, if you're more into S&M, maybe you could get a whip, too… handcuffs… ooh, what about a wand which can turn into a whip? And a magic hat you can pull out handcuffs from… that'd fit perfectly with the theme –"

"N-no! I m-mean… I-I-I D-D-DON'T L-LUST A-A-AFTER N-N-N-N-N-NARUTO-KUN!"

"You _don't_?" His joyful expression dropping at once, he began to wail again; "Oh! What should I do with youths like the bunch of you! So unhormonal… so disgustingly _mature_! What must I do to make you go wild and crazy, just like all the other teenagers? WHAT MUST I DO TO MAKE _YOU_ PUSH NARUTO-KUN INTO A TOILET AND MAKE SWEET, SWEET LOVE TO HIM ALL DAY AND NIGHT?"

Clearly uncomfortable with the topic, she chose to answer, "U-um… I…"

"WHAT MUST I DO TO MAKE YOU BELIEVE IN _LOVE, SEX AND MAGIC_?" he howled like a wounded animal."Ya toooouch is soooo magiiiic –" Sobbing theatrically, he continued to sing, "- tooooo meeee. Straaaangeest things can haaaaaapp –" Another sob escaped him as he mentally contemplated a career as an actor, "-ppen the waaaay youuuu reaaaaact tooooo meeeee." A third sob, and then raising to the climax of his voice, he yowled in an ear-deafening voice; "IIIEEEEIIIEEE WAAAAANNAAAA DOOOO SOMETHING – _SOOOOMEEEETHIIIING_ – SOOOOOOMEEEEEETHIIIIIIIIIING…."

"… sooomeeethiiing," he repeated once more, burying his face into his hands, crying noisily. "Oooh… why do you refuse to do things for me… when I've done so much for all of you… you do nothing for me… _NOOOTHING_ –"

"I-I'll d-do a-a-anything!" Hinata burst out at last, desperation not perfectly veiled in her words.

Sniffling slightly with a wicked glint in his eye that escaped the otherwise observant girl's vision, he whimpered, "Anything?"

"U-um… y-yes, a-anything."

"That is SO kind of you, Hinata-san!" His hazel eyes sparkled with glee as his previous woes seemed to have disappeared in the blink of an eye, or rather, in the simple promise the Hyuuga heiress had just been fooled to make. "I always knew you were the nicest one. Such an angel you are. Then… as a final request… may I ask you to just say one, _single_, INNOCENT sentence to Naruto-kun?"

"U-um…" She, too, Kakashi noticed, seemed to sense that her previous pledge wasn't a particularly wise decision; but much to his glee, knowing her, and knowing the pride of Hyuugas, she'd not go back on her words. "O-of c-course, K-Kakashi-s-san…"

His eyes held an evil glimmer which was far too visible for Hinata's comfort. "I've heard you and Naruto are to have a meeting this afternoon for your project? If you've the chance, get as close to him as possible and tell him this…"

_

* * *

_

So even though you're close to me  
You're still so distant  
And I can't bring you back

* * *

Sakura loved the hospital.

It might sound strange to anybody else – the hospital, in many cases, held a negative meaning; illness, death, loss of beloved ones. But for the pinkette, who was currently strolling down one of Konoha Hospital's many corridors, it was a safe haven.

As she heard her steps echo in the silence, she reveled in the peace and calmness the place offered her. Having spent too many hours of the day being surrounded by her least to say _lively _friends, the silence that greeted her was more than just _refreshing_.

Not only that, but this was the only place where she could escape her _thoughts_. The only worry at hand here was to make sure everybody received the best treatment and was kept safe and healthy, and it was enough to steal all of her attention away from her other anxieties, her other troubles.

As she inhaled the air produced by the air conditioning system, blended with the typical smell of medicine, Sakura felt relaxation creep onto her nerves, donning her a sense of comfort. Even with the throbbing headache supplied by the jet lag, she already felt more refreshed than if she had spent several hours sleeping in her bed.

"I'm not your FUCKING nurse!" a booming voice all-too-familiar to her ears greeted her as she neared her destination. "And you can't just fucking stay here for a fucking _cold_!"

"Language, hime-chan, language," a man's voice responded, a light tone of teasing added to his otherwise mockingly calm voice.

The sound of a fist colliding with somebody's skin could be heard as the man spoke up again; "Oww! Mistreating your patients, eh, Tsunade-hime? That won't look too good for the mayor election, you know! I might take your place as the Hokage if you're not serious enough about your job as a _nurse_!"

Jiraiya – which was indeed the name of the man who was currently in the room Sakura was approaching – was obviously punched again as he uttered another quite audible 'ow'. "You're 1000 years too early to think about taking my place, you old perverted geezer!"

Entering the room, Sakura couldn't help the smile that spread onto her lips as she watched her almost 50-year-old teacher, boss and school principal – not to mention the infamous only-girl-member of the pop trio _Sannin_ from the 60s – in the act of beating the living daylights out of her fellow ex-member and renowned porn novel author, Jiraiya.

"Shishou, it's not good to treat patients like that, y'know," she said with a cheeriness she hadn't been able to summon all day, "if they get further injured, it means more work."

Tsunade opened her mouth to protest, glaring daggers at her apprentice, but Jiraiya cut her off enthusiastically; "Eh, if it isn't Sakura-chan! My, you've grown since I last saw you…"

Not missing the very obvious prying glance at Sakura's chest underneath her scrubs, she habitually punched him in the face, exchanging a smirk with Tsunade, whilst Jiraiya muttered under his breath about suing the hospital for abuse. Then, Tsunade's expression suddenly became stern. "Did you gain any new information about Sound when you were there on your way here?"

He sobered at once at the mention of Sound. "Not much. They recognized me, of course – so they wouldn't tell me anything. I saw Kabuto, though."

"Kabuto?" repeated Tsunade, narrowing her eyes.

Sakura recalled the image of the person in question clearly – he had earlier been a student at The Academy, an inhabitant of Konoha, when, in the midst of the political war between Konoha and Oto had revealed himself to be an Oto spy, and Orochimaru's top lackey, gaining information about Konoha to sabotage it for the upcoming political debate. It was only with very much effort that Tsunade had managed to convince the Japanese government that Konoha was very well capable of taking care of itself, and didn't need having Oto being in control of it.

"Yeah. He wanted to pass this on to Sasuke," Jiraiya's voice jerked her back to reality as she watched him hand Tsunade a crumpled note, which Tsunade unfolded immediately. The mention of the latter's name made Sakura's happiness sink like a stone to the very pits of her stomach; she turned her gaze away, trying not to recollect yesterday's memories – or even the memories of this morning, when she had avoided Sasuke's gaze quite pointedly.

"'Proserpina'?" Tsunade read out loud. "What's that?"

"You tell me."

_I don't want history to repeat again._

She stifled a wince, trying to block out Ino's voice. The sincerity in her eyes… the sorrow when the topic of her father's betrayal had been brought up…

As though she very much enjoyed to torture herself, her own memories called forward a particular one, in which Ino had been hysterically sobbing on Sakura's bathroom floor for hours when she had announced her parents' divorce, her eyes swollen and red when she had finally stopped, merely sobbing brokenly with a parched throat in her best friend's arms.

_I could never forgive myself if I made her look like that__ again, _she thought. Nausea replaced her feeling of emptiness from before as she imagined the look on Ino's face if she only knew half of what Sakura was thinking everyday – the feeling of adrenaline being pumped in her veins whenever Sasuke looked at her, the pride and uncontainable glee whenever he spoke to her, the electricity sparking through every cell of her body when he accidentally touched her…

And then _that_, yesterday – just imagining their faces being close again…

"… but it sounds somewhat familiar. Any ideas, Sakura? Sakura!"

"Huh?" Sakura couldn't help but utter dumbly as she blinked at them in extreme astonishment, snapping out of her trance as she tried to recollect their discussion. "Oh, I'm sorry, shishou… I don't know."

"Sasuke will most likely know if he sees it," Tsunade pondered aloud, not noticing Sakura's eyes turning blank at once at the mention of his name. "I'll have Shikamaru come over later, too, and have him give us the latest report on Oto's activities. Sakura, go tell the Uchiha to wait for me," she barked her order as the pinkette once again struggled to focus. "He's most probably in the lobby for our meeting this afternoon to give me a report on the events in New York – speaking of which, you must hand in the article for the school paper on my desk at the end of your hospital shift tonight. Now go!"

"Yes, shishou," she responded robotically.

The person in question was, in fact, waiting that very second in the lobby of the hospital, immersed in deep thought as his mind was on anything else but mysterious Oto codes. Like a certain roseate-haired girl who, unbeknownst to him, was just preparing herself mentally to face him in the very same hospital, his thoughts revolved around the events from the day before.

He couldn't help but feel a little unexpected jolt as he recalled the exact details of her face merely inches from his; irritated by this, he had already made it a habit to turn it into a picture of her and Naruto's kiss. Fists clenching unconsciously, another additional surge of annoyance surfaced inside of him.

Uchiha Sasuke wasn't an idiot, he concluded. He was not as idiotic as to stupidly deny the fact that he had once cared for _her_ as a friend – and perhaps more than that – and that the urge to be overprotective was easily awakened.

And although he'd rather have ripped his eyeballs out and burned them with all the tomatoes in existence, he had to admit that jealousy was indeed a nasty thing.

_But I'm not _supposed _to be jealous, _he reminded himself for the umpteenth time since last night. _I've no reason to._

All the old associations their surroundings used to don them forged themselves into his mind like a tape on fast forward; 'best friends' – 'soulmates' – 'Siamese twins' – 'inseparable' – and then, that little whisper that they always so tediously ignored, of being a 'couple' –

But they were nothing of that now. They weren't even _friends_, he thought wryly.

Yet, he couldn't help but feel a little tinge of disgusting, annoying, _I-want-to-tear-you-out-but-I-can't_ **warmth** when reminded of their recent relation change lately. Although he had been against it in the beginning – after all, he couldn't forgive her after the fate _she_ had brought upon him – it was undeniable that her company made him feel irritatingly happy, or at least _content_.

But it was probably only due to the fact that she was trying to make their 'project' easier – after all, as she had so clearly put it the day before, '_We've to do it… for _her.'

"Sasuke…?"

The call of his name made him _almost _jump; regaining his cool composure in the last second, he couldn't help but widen his eyes just the tiniest at the sight of the pinkette in question. He acknowledged her with a silent nod, trying to ignore the pause after his name that clearly reminded them both of the lack of the familiar suffix; it was like waiting for an arrival that wouldn't happen.

For a past that wouldn't return.

"Shishou will be late for your meeting," she went on in the same emotionless voice as though she was a robot set on autopilot, "as Jiraiya-sama and shishou have some business to discuss."

Sasuke searched her face out of habit for any negative signs – hidden sadness, anger or frustration, perhaps even _regret_

(_the mere thought filled his chest with something nauseatingly akin to _hope)

but found none. Carefully putting on a bored expression as to not show his hidden confusion, he merely replied at last, "…Aa."

"And also, she asked me to give you this," she added, stretching out her hand to reveal a crumpled piece of paper. Finally showing his frown, he reached for it, mentally processing the words as his brow furrowed further at its contents.

"Do you happen to know what it is?" she questioned, her voice still uncharacteristically devoid of emotion.

"It's nothing important," he muttered, stuffing it carelessly into his pocket. The frown remained on his face, and although he struggled against it, the current of memories surging through him called forward another memory,

(_"Sasuke-kun, if you don't frown you look like an angel!"_

_Pride swelling in the chest although sounding just as blank as always – "… Hn. Angels aren't real, Sakura."_

"_I know that. But if you don't frown, you look like Itachi-kun – and he looks like an angel!")_

a memory he didn't wish to have.

A _past_ he didn't wish he had, or at least one that he didn't keep - against his will - dearly in his memory.

It was only too late that he realized something was wrong. Sakura had never been much of a silent person, albeit lately she had not been quite as talkative as she used to be; but still, she had struggled to fill the pregnant pauses that would occur occasionally between the two of them when they were left alone.

But now, he noticed, she merely stared at him with an unfaltering gaze, her lips unmoving.

Perhaps it was because of his presence, he wondered; but then again – she used to be nervous and tense when intimidated by him. Not like this.

_Never_ like this.

Or perhaps it was because of Naruto, he thought grudgingly; yes, now that the two of them had _advanced _their relationship further, she had no reason to try so hard to be civilized in his presence to make her boyfriend happy. He had, after all, made it clear he found her behavior annoying, and obviously Ino was, impossible as it seemed, even more unobservant than Naruto when it came to the two's attitudes against each other. She'd probably find no difference in comparison to before.

The picture of Naruto's arms around her, their two lips moving slowly against each other, was still plastered into his mind. His frown deepened further, and he felt a strange, churning sensation in his stomach – like he was about to be ill, but yet, it was not _nausea_ – it was wrath.

But again, he reminded himself, he had no reason to be jealous.

And _absolutely _no reason now that she had decided to erase the little insinuation to friendship they had left completely – freeing him from the chains he had begrudgingly put onto himself for Ino's sake. Now they were truly only maintaining a business-only relation.

But if she was determined to put everything

(_all they had, all that had ever meant something, _anything, _all of it)_

behind, then so was he.

"… Was there nothing else?" he asked of her icily, but keeping his voice as casual as possible.

"No. I must go," she replied, and the little note of relief in her voice didn't escape his sharp hearing.

As Sasuke watched her retreating back hurriedly – almost as she wanted to get away as fast as possible – disappear out of sight, it was almost like he had spread his angel's wings at long last and flown far, far away from what had once meant the world to him.

Sasuke was no fool. He was not an idiot to think that cutting off bonds would be that easy – he had done it once, and he knew fair enough that they don't disappear as soon as one has made up his mind to have them do so.

But he wasn't going to be melodramatic and say that the world had stopped revolving just because of it.

Still so, strangely enough, he couldn't help but feel a tug dragging him back to it, the earth his feet had once depended on to stand upright; perhaps it was gravity. Perhaps it was the habit of simply knowing it was there, and now knowing there'd be no turning back.

Or perhaps, those chains were simply not meant to be broken.

_

* * *

_

I hit you and you hit me back

_We fall to the floor  
__The rest of the day stands still_

* * *

Ino loved surprises.

As a child, her mother sometimes scolded her for being 'greedy' – even so, with a smile on her face – for Ino's love for receiving presents was unusual even for her age; it didn't matter what they were, but she was never as thrilled as when she unwrapped a gift, and if she received fewer or less satisfying gifts than the previous Christmas or birthday, she'd throw a tantrum.

At an older and wiser age, Ino no longer had fits of rage due to the lack of presents – not that it ever occurred, especially now with her improved fame and line of admirers and fans – but even so, she simply loved surprises. To be the center of attention, to know that they were all yelling and congratulating _her_, that they were all doing it and being there for _her_ – the fear of abandonment, of loneliness, seemed light years away, as though the worries belonged to another person in another life.

But now, she had also developed a new love – to arrange surprises for others, especially surprise parties.

Ino was, not very surprisingly, the life and soul of every party – the loudest, the craziest, the one who made sure to enjoy herself as much as she could, and try to make everyone in her proximity to do the same as well.

For it was nothing she feared more than silence. Calmness and peace.

That's when her thoughts, her _fears_, seemed the most realistic, when she was unable to escape her thoughts.

She shook off the reminder of the word '_loneliness_', which had haunted her all the way from New York. But ever since Sakura's promise, she felt much more relaxed and refreshed – and even more so when she, with a little thrill of excitement, reminded herself of the current task at hand.

She had asked Shikamaru to meet her at the square in the center of Konoha in order to present to him a little surprise – not a party, because Shikamaru didn't strike her as the party type – which she had found in New York for him, but had lied to him about the meeting being for tutoring purposes.

She imagined the look on his face when she handed him the gift; a keyring of a pineapple with a snoring smiley face she had found on the streets of New York the day before the video shoot, during which they had had some time to roam the fashion capital of the world freely as much as they wished – and could.

The others had been about to fall asleep at any given second, but Ino wasn't about to snooze in peace when she could be going on the greatest shopping spree of her life.

That's when she had found it – it was a pleasant reminder of the always sleepy Shikamaru, and with a pang she realized that she _missed_ him – or well, at least Konoha. He was a reminder of the word _home_, as strange as it was to apply it to somebody she barely knew. But she felt strangely at ease with him; she could act like herself, and not be judged for it, the way she was with Sakura and Sasuke

(_and ignored the tiny little voice in her head questioning whether or not she was _fully _herself with _him)

and when she had been the most troubled at night, her mind filled with worries about the aforementioned pair, she had taken out the keyring and hugged it in the palm of her hand; bizarrely enough, she could hear Shikamaru's voice calming her down, telling her that she was being ridiculous about the two of them, and that she should trust the two of them. After all, they were the most important people in her life.

She was unsure whether or not she was going to share this piece of information with the person in question, but it didn't matter that much; she was more excited about giving him the gift, if nothing else then at least as a token of gratefulness for his mental advice.

Ino tried picturing his face expression as she gave him the pineapple keyring once more – surprise, perhaps? Or maybe he'd even show his rare smile?

The thought made her giddy, as it increased her walking pace; she could barely _wait_. Nearing the square, she was surprised to see that it was almost empty – but then again, it was a Wednesday at noon, and most of the teens that would roam the square later were still in school. She wondered briefly why Shikamaru was allowed to cut class when she was reminded of his importance for Konoha in general; perhaps that made Tsunade allow him an occasional slip-up.

Then, she caught sight of two teens, entangled in each other with such passion that even she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow; of course, she was a typical romantic and simply adored public displays of affection; but these two weren't _cute_ or _romantic_ – they merely looked like they were eating each other's faces.

Slowing down to a halt, she scanned the square, and wondered absent-mindedly where Shikamaru was as she contemplated whether or not the couple would start dry-humping in what they probably thought was a place devoid of other people, except the occasional middle-aged passersby, who gave them quite disgusted glares.

Then, with a jolt of extreme shock, it struck her that one half of the face-eating pair _was_ Shikamaru.

She felt like she had been slapped.

_It's impossible,_ she told herself automatically, but it was indeed the person in question – if one hadn't recognized him otherwise, his signature pineapple-shaped, spiky ebony ponytail was hard to miss; not to mention the identity of the other, of the girl. Blonde with four pigtails, curvy and dressed in a pale blue dress, it was as clear as the Konoha sky who she was.

Sabaku no Temari.

Scenes of the pair flashed past in her mind briefly; the two of them attending the royal Sand siblings' party together – and then Shikamaru's words; "_I never said that. And even if I'd have liked to, Temari would never need to know._"

She had only jumped to the conclusion that they were merely business associates; Suna and Konoha were known for their alliance, and perhaps Temari knew of Shikamaru's position as a spy… and perhaps Tayuya, the redhead, merely thought they were a couple because of how they were sometimes spotted together…

Ino wondered how she could be so blind. The anger of having not realized before now blended into her astonishment, when she felt another surge of confusion; why was she even upset? Searching for answers but finding none, she merely stood frozen to the spot, staring at them with widened eyes, until the two finally noticed her presence.

They slowly broke apart, as Shikamaru gazed back at her with an undecipherable expression in his eyes; his hand was finding its way back to his own lap when Temari clasped it with hers, intertwining their fingers. He didn't take his eyes away from the standing blonde, but Ino's eyes had traveled to their hands with a slightly disturbed expression.

"… Ino," he stated at last, as though allowing her to speak. The calling of her name brought her back to Earth with an uncomfortable thud, and she suddenly realized she needed to _talk_ to him when all she wanted to do was to sprout a pair of wings and fly far away from what she had seen.

"Uh… I… I came here because… um…," she stuttered very uncharacteristically in a slightly high-pitched voice, all thoughts going out of her head. Her hand tightened around the little package saying 'To Shikamaru' clenched in her fist; one thing was sure – she definitely was in no mood to be presenting surprises to him.

Especially when she had gotten quite an unpleasant one from _him_ moments ago.

"For tutoring purposes," he filled in, still looking at her in a maddeningly undecipherable manner. He looked _bored_ almost; but his eyes were intense, piercing – it was odd how a pair of flat black orbs, not deep obsidian ones like Sasuke's, could suddenly be so sharp, she mused randomly. "That's what you said on the phone."

"On the phone. Right." A pregnant silence fell, and then; "That's… that's why I came. Because… my phone doesn't work."

He looked at her as though she had just announced that her greatest ambition was to work at Burger King for the rest of her life. "You just called me with it."

"See, that's – that's the thing," she pressed on, doing a poor attempt at a smile, which only looked as a strange spasm of her lip corners; "Sometimes it works… sometimes it doesn't. And if there's… um… some _tutoring_ that should be done, um… I might not be available. I'll contact you when my phone is fixed. Bye."

Ino couldn't stop her own feet carrying her in a sprint away from them; she wanted to stop running, to look composed, as if she didn't _care_

(_why she did was beyond her)_

but she couldn't. The relief of getting away from there rapidly faded as it was replaced, once again, by the image of the two kissing – and then the smug glint in Temari's eyes was printed into her mind as though somebody had just super-glued it to her inner vision.

_

* * *

_

Fine lines between this and that  
When things go wrong  
I pretend that the past isn't real

* * *

Home.

For many people, it meant a sanctuary. A warm place filled with warm people. A place where one was welcomed with a smile and where one felt at ease.

For Hinata, it meant something entirely different.

She swallowed, feeling the discomfort already prickle underneath her skin, like a tiny chemical reaction in her body; something was already blocking her throat, although she had just stepped through the main gates and bowed respectfully to the Branch elders (although it wasn't required, Hinata was equally polite to everybody).

It was like that every time she came home – from school, from a _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ concert, from being outdoors at all. It was almost as though she had been put on display for everybody to criticize; or rather, for one _specific _person to criticize. And what was worse was that although she always knew what to expect, it was almost as though she experienced it anew every time.

However, Hinata, being the ever so optimist, had at least found something bright in the situation; strangely enough, Neji had been quite _pleasant_ during the ride home. She pondered whether it was due to his fatigue, or perhaps he simply looked forward to meeting Tenten; but he had not even glared at her once, and when speaking to her, even sounded almost… _nice_. She had almost fallen off her chair when he had politely asked her to go into the car first without a chilly undertone.

She glanced sideways at the person in question; although Neji still wore the same stony expression he always fashioned, it seemed… _softer_ somehow. Perhaps him being fatigued was a good thing, she mused; there were no apparent lines of hatred etched into his face like it normally was. But then again, confusingly enough, she had always remembered him to be in a foul mood when tired…

Her eyes traveled to where his were when she registered a change in his expression; it had quickly turned slightly foul, just to look uncharacteristically… _bothered_. There was a frown on his face, but not one of anger or impatience; just one that merely looked troubled, with a mere, strange glint…was that _nervousness_?...in his eyes.

Then, she saw the reason for his troubles.

_Tenten_.

Stifling a giggle, she walked forward as she watched her jump from side to side, delivering and avoiding kicks and hits with an elegance that seemed almost unfitting for the context – and for the person in question. It was only when Hinata saw who her opponent was that she allowed her smile to disappear.

Hyuuga Hiashi.

The boss of Hyuuga Corp., the one responsible for turning it into one of the most influential and powerful companies in Asia; the leader of the Hyuuga clan and the head patriarch in the Main family; Hinata's and Hanabi's father; a man of immense power who fashioned such aristocratic grace that even for his icy arrogance was admired among the most powerful people in Japan, and perhaps the most cruel and cold-blooded person Hinata knew.

Although the last-mentioned label she'd never even dream of speaking aloud.

Hiashi stopped his movements as he drew himself into his usual, intimidating posture as he caught sight of the approaching pair. "I see that you've made it back safely," he stated coolly, his tone insinuating that he had not exactly wished for it.

Hinata gulped, and tried to compose herself, but was unable to lift her eyes from the ground. "Y-yes, father."

A strained silence fell as he spoke with a traitorously soft, yet piercingly sharp voice; "My face is not plastered at your feet, Hinata."

Reluctantly, but steadfastly, she rolled her head upwards to meet his gaze. It was not unusually intense, and with the same loathing expressed in it as always; the unveiled disgust was almost at the same level as if Hinata had been a mere peasant daring to show up in the Hyuuga grounds rudely asking for money. "M-my apologies, f-father."

"That stuttering of yours is utterly disturbing. How many times have I told you to change it? If you are not disposed of your name as a Hyuuga before the day I must leave Hyuuga Corp. in your care to be relinquished forever, you will ruin all possible business relations. Stuttering," he enunciated clearly and at an exaggeratingly slow pace, as though she was mentally handicapped, "is a weakness. Hyuuga heiresses are not allowed to have weaknesses.

"It is, besides an obvious sign at nervousness – which in turn signalize a lack of self-confidence – which will prove quite important not to show for business partners. Of course, if you have even been able to absorb the slightest ounce of knowledge since the age of three – which I doubt, I must add – you know that already. Although I understand that you've no right whatsoever to show self-confidence, as you possess _nothing_ you've the right to be confident about, you must at least pretend you do. Understand?"

"Yes, father," she mumbled, bowing her head in shame.

"And now, to a more pleasant topic," he spoke anew, crossing his arms behind his back in a pose that greatly spoke of aristocratic pride – and she felt a surge of relief at the end of the criticism, which was surprisingly brief; perhaps he was in a good mood – and sneered in triumph. "I spoke to Kazekage-sama this morning."

In a mere instant, Hinata could feel her insides turn to ice.

"Of course, the current Kazekage-sama was unavailable, per usual, but his father the previous Kazekage-sama was quite delighted about this appointment. Now it seems as though we only need a couple of confidential 'witnesses' in order to fully complete the contract," he stated with an almost uncharacteristic giddiness; however, it was tainted somehow, like the tone of a child who had just stolen candy from another. "I must admit, it was quite a brilliant plan that dawned on me; to see that you actually are of use to the company, after all – even if it is only due to your birth, which I in turn is responsible for. With the help of Kazekage-sama, we shall be able to overthrow the bloody Uchihas at last; and all for a microscopic favor… at the end of next year, you and Kazekage-sama will be –"

"Hiashi-sama!"

Hiashi looked utterly annoyed, whereas Hinata suppressed her expression of relief; she had at least been spared to hear the word she had been dreading ever since the planning of this project – because it was, indeed, nothing more than a project in her father's eyes – had begun. "Yes?" he snarled, aggravated to be interrupted in his monologue.

The Branch family member's face color paled as he continued to keep his head bowed in shame, very much like Hinata – although she had raised hers to look at the scene – and said; "There's a… well, if you must call it an intruder… but he keeps saying he's _invited_ and Hyuuga-sama's _guest_, but I –"

"Speak clearer, boy," he snapped menacingly as his eyes narrowed, "or must I order the Branch family to spend their free time studying Japanese in the library?"

"That was uncalled for, Hiashi-_sama_," a familiar voice retorted – a familiar voice that made Hinata's heart soar out of her chest as her eyes widened in uncensored surprise; "it isn't his fault if you're looking like Papa Bear without eating his porridge in the morning."

Hiashi's snowy, almost iris-less orbs narrowed to slits. "_You_."

"Yep, me," the blonde grinned in response, his voice slightly mocking and his azure eyes glittering with mischief as he made a slight bow; "Uzumaki Naruto to your service, sir."

"Who gave you permission to enter my home?" he growled furiously. "Who was the completely mindless, idiotic _fool _that'd think the nephew of Kyuubi would be welcomed on the Hyuuga grounds?"

Hinata could feel her heart stop, and anxiety streaming through her at her father's remark. She felt a desire to oppose it, but her own cowardice disgusted her; furthermore, it was overshadowed by her fear. What if he said something that'd prevent him from being able to return to the Hyuuga grounds? Then their project would be diminished, and all her chances of being able to talk with him with it. What if he decided on his _own _that he never wished to return, rather receiving a bad grade?

And worse – what if he was actually _hurt _by her father's brutal words?

But Naruto merely quirked his lips upwards into a cold, equally brutal smile Hinata had never seen him use before, and responded sharply, "Don't worry, Hiashi, I wouldn't even have wanted to come here if I hadn't been invited by Hinata."

He immediately turned towards her, eyes ablaze with immeasurable wrath. "You," he spat, and if his tone was filled with hatred before, it was at least a hundred times worse now; "_invited _him?"

She parted her quivering lips to reply, but Naruto was faster. "Yeah, for our project. And you don't have to lash out your anger on her, Papa Bear. It's not her fault that you don't allow her to get out of the house unless Neji is with her, and he's got his graduation project and martial arts and all that crap you force him to do."

Hiashi looked like he'd implode and cause an early Apocalypse. "Do not," he breathed, his eyes bulging with fervent rage, "lecture me on how to treat my daughter, Uzumaki. And do not test the limits of my measurable patience. It is absolutely none of your concern in which tone I choose to speak to her."

"Of course it's my concern," he threw back dryly, and Hinata enjoyed the gravity-defying feeling of being on Cloud Nine, "since we're being partnered up for a school project, aren't we? If she's feeling bad about you being a total jerk later and the project ends up being a failure, we might get a bad grade, you know. And I thought grades were all you Hyuugas cared about?"

The world could've exploded right underneath Hinata's feet and the sky fallen down on top of her head without her noticing right then. The mixture of feelings balling up in her chest, almost causing her to implode inside was almost too immense for her to measure, or to define; all she knew was that it was positive – oh, yes, it was positive beyond one's imagination; if this was only a product of her imagination, and merely just a dream, she wished to never wake up.

Hiashi, on the other hand, seemed much less joyous. He looked as though he was struggling to come up with an equally offensive remark, and then he suddenly softened – or perhaps, _softened _wasn't the right word. If his anger had up until now been an unstable flow of liquid streaming rapidly through his veins, it had suddenly taken form.

He smirked icily, and retorted; "Well, I guess an unwanted _orphan_ would never understand the nature of a parent."

The reaction was immediate.

Naruto tensed, and all of his air of chilliness and mock politeness was gone; his eyes burned with a savage, raw rage as his fists clenched, turning his knuckles white, his entire position speaking openly of how he was trying to restrain himself from attacking.

But Hiashi merely chuckled with the same arrogant amusement as one would at somebody making a fool out of themselves in public, and walked away.

A tense silence fell as Hinata looked sideways for the first time at Neji and Tenten since their arrival, her gaze probing for answers what to do; Tenten, who had up until Naruto's appearance looked poised to kill, her fists equally clenched as Naruto's were now, softened at her silent plead and walked forward, putting a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"Fuck what that bastard says," she said comfortingly in her usual rough manner, "he's just one hell of a son of a bitch anyway. What the hell does he know about _anything_? I mean, what the heck. He puts all Papa Bears in the world to shame."

The corners of his mouth twitched slightly. "Thanks, Tenten."

"No prob." She ruffled his hair playfully, making him wince slightly – sometimes, Tenten could be a little _too _rough – and added; "I'll treat you to ramen next time we're out for totally kicking Hiashi's ass. Well, not literally. But you know."

"And as of whether you're unwanted or not," Neji spoke up monotonously, sounding more like he was reading the statistics of the rain capacity in East China than anything else; "is an unsolved issue as you've never been assigned to an orphanage, having lived with Haruno for a short while before your shared living habitat with Uchiha. Therefore, it is an unsupported and biased statement."

Naruto grinned in response, looking just the slightest confused. "Thanks… I think."

Tenten, who looked like she had just smelled something quite nasty, smiled again – but this time, it was rather strained. "Well, I guess I'm off now. I just remembered something I had to do."

"Ten -," Neji began, but she had already stalked off, marching at an impressive speed away from the group. Heaving a sigh, he turned back to the two of them with a mere nod. "I'll see you later, Naruto, Hinata-sama."

And with that, he followed suit.

The silence that fell made Hinata shift her weight from foot to foot and fidgeting with her hands in discomfort. "A-are you h-h-hungry, N-Naruto-kun?" she choked out at last, immediately embarrassed by the stuttering she had only just been reprimanded for.

"Huh? Oh, yeah," he responded awkwardly, lacing his hands together on the back of his head, raising both of his arms in an apparent try to be nonchalant. "Sure."

If the silence could've taken physical shape, Hinata mused desperately, it would've become a cement block falling on both of their heads, crushing especially Hinata's skull and body.

Finally, they both exclaimed at the same time, "Sorry!"

Or rather, Naruto burst out a quite loud 'Sorry!' and Hinata stammered hers, her voice becoming slightly high-pitched; Naruto, not noticing this, though, babbled on; "I know I shouldn't have been rude to your old man – I mean, uh, your _dad_ like that, it was just –" He trailed off, suddenly realizing something. "Wait, were you saying something before?"

"Y-y-you d-don't need to a-a-a-apol-l-logize, N-Naruto-kun," she replied, her words stumbling across each other more than ever, "I a-apologize f-for my f-father's rudeness… I…"

"Oh, _that_." He laughed uneasily. "It's okay, _you _don't need to apologize. Actually, I feel sort of sorry for you for having such a dad." Immediately realizing his mistake, he added swiftly, "I mean…"

But the smile that surfaced on her lips silenced him. He grinned back, the boyish impishness etched into his features just as usual; the simple gesture made Hinata's head swim, but in a pleasant way; she felt as though she was about to doze off into a relaxing, hot bath.

"So… wh-what would y-you like t-to eat?" she questioned, trying to keep her stammering at a minimum, the blush on her cheeks instead deepening tenfold; this, however, escaped Naruto's unobservant eyes, as he merely looked around the Hyuuga grounds with curiosity.

"Whatever's fine," he replied absent-mindedly, his eyes grazing the luxurious interior design the Hyuuga Main family's corridors sported. "What do you normally eat?"

"U-um," she racked her brain nervously for an answer, and finding none, she instead compensated with; "a-all k-kinds of th-things, I g-guess. O-our chefs are q-quite t-talented."

Realizing she had just bragged, she flushed scarlet, but Naruto merely looked at her in awe. "Wow, you've personal chefs? That means you can eat ramen any time you want!"

Unable to help herself, she smiled widely at his enthusiasm. "W-well… we're n-not allowed to e-eat ramen."

Naruto stared at her as though Hinata had just announced that underneath her chest-length, dark hair, she had secretly hid seventeen tentacles and that she was an alien from Jupiter that liked Burger King better than McDonalds. "You don't eat _ramen_?"

Her blush deepened. "Wh-when I'm o-outside of the H-H-Hyuuga gr-grounds, N-Neji-onii-san s-sometimes lets me."

"But you're not allowed to do that here," he stated in a tone that clearly insinuated that he wanted her to say otherwise. Shaking her head solemnly, he demanded; "_Why_?"

"H-heiresses…" She exhaled slightly at the mention of the word, feeling the hatred for it simmer within, "are n-not supposed to e-eat unhealthy n-nutrition a-as to n-not b-become… _f-fat._"

"Fat? They think you're _fat_?" Naruto's eyes glimmered with sheer disbelief as his face fashioned a disapproving frown. "C'mon, they're more paranoid than Ino! I mean, you're not fat _at all_! Sure, you've got curves and stuff – not that I've looked," he added hastily, his cheeks glowing slightly, "but you're not _fat_! And even if you were, it shouldn't matter, I mean, it's what on the inside that counts, right? And you're a nice person! So who the hell cares? Just look at Chouji! _He_'s fat, and _he_ doesn't stop eating ramen just because of it! Nobody should _ever_ stop eating ramen! Besides, what's the big deal? They're your _family_! They should like you just the way you are, like _we_ do!"

Naruto had continued to walk, so caught up in his speech that he was unable to notice anything else, but Hinata had almost stopped completely; her pace was so slow that it was barely faster than a snail's. His words rang in her ears, and like him, she didn't notice anything else – but not because she was aggravated, but because she felt… _wondrous_.

How did he do it? Save her, so effortlessly, from her doubt? Salvage her so easily with his words, making her feel at ease by saying things even without the intention to calm her?

_It's what's on the inside that counts._

And he had applied it to _her_. He had meant that what _she_ had on the inside was good enough to compensate for her poor exterior – and it seemed as though he didn't think badly of her exterior, either.

It was almost as though all of her insecurities – all of her fears, her doubts, her self-loathing – just seemed to fade. Fade in comparison to the much greater admiration, the overwhelmingly strong _gratitude_ and _relief_ – not to mention _joy_ – that seemed to fill her from within.

And he had also said 'we'. We, _they_, liked her just the way she was.

And he was included amongst them.

It seemed almost like a classic fairy-tale moment. Except that Hinata wasn't a Princess, and she wasn't getting the Prince. It was more in the terms of the ugly duckling who had turned into a swan – or that of an invalid bird who had learned to fly.

She wouldn't have even cared if the moon had fallen from its axis and crushed every single bone of her body right then and there.

Because the person she had always, _always_ wanted to acknowledge her had done so. And he even thought _well _of her; she'd have thought he'd at least find her annoying, or unacceptably _bizarre_ – for somebody who was so sociable, so self-confident, so _at ease_ and _talkative_, it must be terrible to be stuck with somebody like _her_ – shy and stuttering, quiet and always so uncomfortable.

But he didn't. He even _liked _her – even if it was just platonic – just the way she was.

And in that chosen moment, Hinata stumbled upon the edge of the tatami mat of the room which Naruto had entered – which, her subconscious told her through the euphoric fog of her mind, was definitely not the kitchen – and fell forwards.

And as though through an amazingly timed Cliché, Naruto chose about the same moment to notice that it had been unusually quiet since his rant.

"Er, Hinata?" he asked, the discomfiture in his voice transparent.

And then, she knocked him forward to the floor, their legs sprawled in an entangled mess on the floor as Hinata only managed to steady herself in order to prevent their heads from crashing into one another.

They stared, quite shocked, at each other.

Hinata, who had not quite recovered from her mental state of mind, registered every single detail of his face, and dazedly wondered what it'd be like to touch them.

Naruto, on the other hand, whose mind had been said to be corrupted by his godfather's (who was none other than Jiraiya) influence, associated their position with images not too dissimilar from those Kakashi had showed Hinata on the plane the same morning.

A voice belonging to the person in question was just then repeating his words in Hinata's head; "_I've heard you and Naruto are to have a meeting this afternoon for your project? If you've the chance, get as close to him as possible and tell him this…_"

_As close as possible_…, she mused, still dazed as she leaned forward slightly, their noses brushing slightly against each other as Naruto's breath fanned her lips.

"U-uh," he stuttered quite uncharacteristically as his flush deepened, having to have switched personalities with her through the crash. "Hinata… wh-what are you doing?"

"Naruto-kun?" she smiled, amazed by the fact that in the moment, her voice seemed stable. Her white orbs holding his azure ones steadily, she wondered dreamily whether she could hold this one, single moment of happiness – of uncontrollable, bursting happiness that made her mind cloudy and her thinking unclear – in her memory forever.

"U-um… y-yeah?"

She took a deep breath, and with a widened smile, she asked; "I know I'm not Fred Flintstone, but can I make your Bedrock?"

_

* * *

_

You now I see keeping everything inside  
You now I see even when I close my eyes  
I'm trapped in this memory

* * *

_Don't cry_, an all-too-familiar baritone voice reprimanded her in her head monotonously.

I'm not, she wanted to respond, and I won't.

Strangely enough, she wished she _could_. As much as she hated crying, it felt better than the void inside of her that seemed to be sucking any positive emotion into it like a massive black hole; better than the hollowness and sharp pain that surged through her every time she recalled the iciness in his tone, every time she repeated his words, from before.

He had, of course, realized that it was better that they keep a distance, she thought. That they were better off this way… and it'd be much easier once they ended all of this 'tutoring', and they'd go back to how they used to be.

Although what they seemed to have now was almost as if they had already reverted to how things used to be.

_No_, a nagging voice she didn't want to acknowledge spoke in the back of her mind, _this isn't how you used to be._

Trying to shake the thought off, she tried to concentrate at the task at hand – getting the pills the hospital had asked her to fetch at a nearby pharmacy as they were out of stock. Instead of taking the shortcut, she had felt inclined to exhaust herself as much as possible by taking the long route by walking into the maze of intercrossing alleys at the hospital; the more tired she'd get at the end of the day, the easier she'd drift off to sleep.

However, as an annoying fly that'd simply not leave a dessert alone, the thought prodded at her mind, forcing itself to reappear. A memory came to mind – that time in 8th grade when she had overslept for the final exam in Japanese, and she had been convinced she had done terrible, knowing her parents would most likely be disappointed in her.

_Don't cry_, he had told her when they had gotten out of the classroom; not in the comforting, friendly hero-of-the-day manner Naruto would, but in a monotonous, almost _annoyed_ voice.

_I'm not_, she had thrown back at him snappishly, because even then, she had hated to cry.

_Then don't look like as you're about to do it,_ he had retorted.

_I won't,_ she had reassured him in the same venomous tone.

_There's nothing to do about it,_ he had said after a moment's silence, which in Sasuke-speak translated to, 'Is there something I can do to make you feel better?'

She had laughed humorlessly, _I wish I could fly away, far from here, and never have to come back._

He had looked at her with an undecipherable face expression, and then, grabbing hold of her wrist, had pulled her away against her protests. After much walking – or, well, striding for him, half-jogging and tripping on cracks in the pavement and little stones and all kinds of things on the way – they had reached a tree, and he had climbed it, motioning for her to do the same.

After some more protesting, she had obliged.

Then, sitting on one of the branches, she had sourly demanded of him, _Why did you bring me here?_

And he had replied, almost surprised at her question; _Because you said you wanted to fly._

The feeling that had filled her was _incredulity _– and then, laughter had escaped her. _You're so weird, Sasuke-kun. _And although he hadn't exactly convinced her that everything was going to be fine, or that she _had_ indeed done well on her exams, she felt as though her burden truly had been lifted off her shoulders, at least for that moment, and that she _was_ flying.

All because of him.

The memory that had once brought a smile to her lips now only brought stinging pain.

She hated to be so dependent on him. So dependent on _his_ actions, _his_ words – like every single thing said or done by him could simply change not only her mood, but her entire _being_ – she felt disgustingly like a puppet, every single cell of her body connected to his by a string; a thread she wished to break, but couldn't, and everything he did affected her.

Like now. The coldness. It shouldn't have affected her at all. She had been used to it, before – that was the way things were _supposed_ to be. They were only even on talking terms due to their 'tutoring sessions' – like business affiliates, almost.

And wasn't that the way it was supposed to be? Impersonal, cold, _professional_ – perhaps they had not been civilized enough to each other, what with her stony façade, and his overly icy voice, but they were not supposed to grow attached to each other.

_You and I both know that the two of you have… are… history. And I don't know about the two of you, but I don't want history to repeat again_, came Ino's voice anew in her memories for the umpteenth time the same afternoon, _I hope it can all go back to how it was before… with a little improvement, of course. Me and Sasuke will be more passionate, more romantic, more in love before… and it'll be all thanks to you, Sakura. Thank you. Really._

She felt lousy. No, more than that.

She felt as pure trash, the filthiest dirt and scum under her own shoe; needless to say, she felt as the worst best friend in the world.

Ino had _asked _her. Asked her if it was okay, if she had her consent to date Sasuke. And she had said yes.

Why did she regret it now? How did she even _dare_ to regret it now, _dare_ to regret the fact that her best friend was truly happy at last? That she had finally found love, that she finally dared believe in it?

How could she even _think _of stealing it away from her? Of wishing to be in her place?

Of wishing to be the one that Sasuke loved?

What right did she have to feel as though her heart would soar every time he spoke her name, or feel as though he'd just stabbed her whenever he spoke so harshly, like he had just done?

Sakura wished she could go back to the tree she and Sasuke had once climbed, and be able to feel so at ease once more. As though she truly _flew_ without wings, leaving all of her troubles behind, and although she did not feel relief, nor happiness, it was as though she had been freed from a burden.

As she realized she had reached the end of the road, facing a wall, it also dawned upon her a little too late that she had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she had just walked straight forward without changing her path at the crossroads she had just passed.

It was only then, when she turned around, that she also realized she wasn't alone.

_

* * *

_

No matter how far we've come  
I can't wait to see tomorrow  
The sound of your voice  
Painted on my memories

* * *

_Strange_, was the word that flew across Shikamaru's mind as he tried to describe the last couple of hours.

He had known that Ino would return home from New York this particular day, but for her to call him first of all people and ask for a _tutoring _meeting after a 15-hour-flight was quite bizarre. What was even more bizarre was the fact that even though Temari frequently visited Konoha, she did it for business purposes and rarely made time to meet him during those visits, as she was in a hurry to go back to Suna.

However, the moment he had mentioned (as they text messaged) that he was about to meet up with Ino – and she had asked which one, to which he had responded 'Yamanaka Ino, Uchiha Sasuke's girlfriend' – she had immediately bounded over, and when he had asked her about her sudden appearance, she had stifled his questions with a quite passionate kiss.

Which Shikamaru of course didn't mind, but what was even stranger was that Ino had arrived just after she had begun the kissing, and her strange reaction to it.

And her even stranger reason for meeting up with him in the first place.

_Troublesome_, was the next word that he thought of, and he settled for that. _All of it is troublesome._

He hadn't become less confused as Temari left almost immediately after Ino's disappearance, looking extremely smug, and then he had been told by Tsunade to come to Jiraiya's hospital room to discuss important matters.

Shikamaru was distraught from his troublesome thinking as he saw a familiar figure lean against the wall of the hospital corridor, wearing a frown more irritable than his usual face expression. "Sasuke," he said, which made the person in question look up at him, still frowning. "What're you doing here?"

"The Hokage requested my presence," he informed him brusquely. "I was told to meet you here."

"Right." It made sense that he had been called for – after all, he was the one who knew the most about Sound, considering how he had spent two whole years there. The two walked in silence towards their destination, when Ino appeared anew in his thoughts, which probed him to ask: "Did anything happen to Ino while you were in New York?"

At this, his frown disappeared temporarily – replaced by mild surprise. "You two know each other?"

"She's my tutor," he explained, astonished. "You didn't know?"

Sasuke shrugged. "What she does in her free time is none of my concern. Either way, it's too much to keep track of."

"It's really too troublesome," he agreed. He reflected a moment over how much Temari did in _her_ free time – working for her brother, Gaara, painting, charity work, tutoring, freelance modeling, just to name a few – and then remembered the original topic. "So, did anything happen to her? She seemed strange this afternoon when I met her."

There was a strained silence, and then; "I don't know. There probably shouldn't be anything," said Sasuke, but his voice sounded uncharacteristically uncomfortable.

Strangely curious, although not quite sure why, Shikamaru was about to ask more, when Sasuke swiftly opened the door to the hospital room they had been heading for. "Ah, Nara, Uchiha, you're finally here," Tsunade said as she noticed their entrance.

"I've the report with me," replied Shikamaru as he stepped forward, pulling out two folded paper pages he had kept in his pocket, handing it to her.

"Good," she nodded in response. "Uchiha, have you been able to decipher the code?"

"The code…?" Shikamaru wondered aloud, to which Jiraiya opened his mouth to explain, but Tsunade cut him off speedily, "A code which the idiot here received while he was in Sound and was told to give to Uchiha." Once more, Jiraiya opened his mouth – most likely to protest this time – but Tsunade merely waved him off dismissively and said, "Continue."

"Proserpina," Sasuke explained, his brow furrowing even further, "is a code used in Oto to warn a person that they themselves might not be in danger, but that the person closest to them might be held hostage or abused, or possibly both."

"Does that mean that Ino is…," Shikamaru began, but was cut off by Linkin Park's "_With You"_. The three turned their gazes towards Sasuke simultaneously, who had just revealed his Motorola from his pocket.

"It's Ino," he supplied, and as Tsunade nodded her approval for him to take the phone call, he flipped the cell phone open. "Hello?"

"It's me," the voice of Ino chirped cheerily, loud enough for everyone in the room to hear – which was not particularly difficult, as it was also completely silent. "What're you doing right now?"

"I'm…" He trailed off, and then said, "I'm with Shikamaru."

"Shikamaru?" Her voice became undecipherable as she repeated his name, which caused the person in question to raise an eyebrow, and then she spoke in her twittering voice again; "I didn't know you guys knew each other! That's actually _perfect_, because I was wondering if you wanted to come clubbing with me tonight. You can ask him too, while you're at it – the more, the merrier, -"

"Ino," Sasuke started as he glanced sideways and saw Tsunade's annoyed face expression.

"- I know, I know, you hate clubbing and we've just had, like, an 15-hour-flight, but we've _got to_ celebrate our return to Konoha, and I just totally _feel _like I'm in the mood for clubbing! Besides, if you don't go, then I won't be able to convince the rest of the guys to go, and somebody should watch Naruto –"

"Ino."

"- when he gets drunk, it's just a real _mess_, I mean, do you remember last time when we were clubbing with him, and he almost got into this major fight with the bouncer? What if they had called the police on us? Imagine that, us getting arrested for underage drinking _and_ for abuse of their staff, God, that'd be all over the tabloids in a couple of _minutes_ –"

"Ino."

"- and that'd just be horrible for our rep. We probably wouldn't be able to get in _anywhere_! Or, okay, Club Leaf, maybe, but that's just because they _love _us. Speaking of which, that's where I thought we'd go tonight –"

Tsunade now looked thoroughly irritated. "Uchiha," she spoke up, "if you don't tell her _now_, _I_ will take care of the task."

"_Ino_," he said, vexed, through gritted teeth, to which she babbled, "- because they've got a new DJ and all, and I – oh, wait, are you trying to say something? I'm sorry, it's just that I'm really excited about this whole thing, and I – _OH MY GOD_!!"

The room was silent as the phone call came to an abrupt end, leaving the group to listen to the beeps emanating from the phone.

* * *

_Even if you're not with me, I'm with you_

_

* * *

_

Oh my God. I sincerely apologize for the lameness of this chapter. (Especially the lame ending.) But it was necessary to kind of hint what's going to happen next, and also show some character/pairing development. It's going to get better, I promise...

And oh, I focused A LOT on Ino's feelings this chapter, because I felt that even though I hate her for standing in the way for SasuSaku in this chapter, I still feel sorry for her; I want people to know that even though she's selfish, she has reasons for it - even if it doesn't make things better. But after all, she's still a human, and it seems like when reading (and writing), one tends to forget that even characters have flaws, because they're based on humans. You always expect more of them just because they're characters, but not all humans are unselfish and think of others first, and it's the same with characters.

(**_SPOILER WARNING_**: WHAT IS UP WITH THE NARUSAKU HINTS IN THE MANGA? If NaruSaku becomes canon, I will go to Japan and kill Kishi. I'm serious. I mean, they can't just do the whole Hinata's confession thing and make it NaruSaku. That's just _cruel_.)

Don't know much about when the next chapter will be published; I'm having my birthday party in a week (my birthday was yesterday, whee, one day after Sasuke) and after that, the local festival's coming up along with the school start. But I'll try.

Until then, leave reviews, please? (Even if the reviews are about the lameness of this chapter?)


	9. o8: the smile

**Disclaimer: I hate Kishi. It's official. I still wish I owned Naruto, though. And the songs used in this chapter are "Haruka Kanata" and "Fighting Dreamers", both Naruto opening themes. And the song that was hinted at but not used is Kanye West's "LOVE LOCKDOWN", the lyrics actually fit! (Which by the way totally describes what I feel for my crush. That jerkass fuckface asshole -**

**Okay, you can start reading the chapter now.)**

* * *

You know, when I was a kid, the first thing I ever wanted to be was an actress.

(_Well, except that time when I wanted to be a princess, and that time when I wanted to be Superman, and that time when I wanted to be a ballerina --)_

I mean, what with the way I've been babbling about supermodels up until now, you probably thought I wanted to be a supermodel, right?

(_I knew that rockstars and supermodels came as a set, but I wanted to be an actress before that)_

But that's not true. I wanted to be an actress. And I wanted to be it so badly that I was sure that I was going to die if I didn't become one pretty soon.

(_"Aww, Sakura-chan, do we've to play Hollywood _again_?!")_

I changed my mind, though, when he told me –

(_"You're a really bad liar, Sakura. You're only good at faking smiles.")_

- that I would never make it as an actress.

_("Teme! Don't say so mean things to Sakura-chan! I'm going to KILL you!")_

I was saddened, of course. I wasn't more than just a kid.

(_"Sakura, stop crying. It's annoying.")_

But it's strange,

(_"You're only good at faking smiles, so –")_

how all it could take was one sentence,

(_" – instead of being an actress –")_

a smile that I couldn't even have faked if I wanted to would appear,

(_"- you could be a supermodel.")_

that smile I only reserved for him.

* * *

**o8.**

Ino couldn't believe her eyes.

Having stopped dead in her tracks, clutching her cell-phone tightly with her arm frozen in a pose that made her look as though she was about to swear the witness oath in a court, she looked very much like a statue, with the only difference that her blue eyes were looking as though they'd bulge out of their sockets, and her lips agape, a face expression few artists would like to depict in their sculptures.

"You look unbelievably ridiculous with your mouth hanging open like that," remarked Temari dryly – for it was indeed her who leaned against the wall to Ino's apartment building.

Closing her mouth abruptly with a frown, she said incredulously, "What're you, a stalker?"

"Frowning will make you develop early wrinkles," the other blonde retorted in response, effectively dodging her question.

"Thanks for your concern, but if there's nothing else you want to talk about…" Ino attempted to enter the door of the building, but Temari swiftly blocked her way.

"Actually, I do have some business with you."

Waiting with mock patience as she lifted an arched, perfectly plucked eyebrow and crossed her arms, she demanded, "And what'd that be, exactly?"

"I understand that you're Shikamaru's tutor?"

"… Yeah," she replied with as much nonchalance as she could muster. "What about it?"

"You looked rather shocked before." A smug smirk flashed across her face. "Didn't he tell you about the two of us dating?"

She mirrored her smirk as she threw back triumphantly, unable to disguise it; "Actually, he didn't."

However, the reaction she had been (secretly) hoping for didn't come. Instead, Temari's sneer not only refrained from ceasing to exist, it even became _wider_

(_stupid wannabe-Angelina Jolie, Ino mentally grumbled)_

as she stared down at Ino (because she was indeed a bit taller, even with the two of them wearing what looked like equally high heels). "Then it must've come as quite a shock to see me and _Shikamaru_ being so passionate before. Maybe you wouldn't expect it, but he's quite romantic when he wants to be."

"Thanks for the information," she remarked coolly, reaching for the door; but once again, Temari stood in her way.

"I'm only telling you, Tutor Girl, to be a little bit more careful. I know how Shikamaru attracts girls like a magnet, and what with you spending more time with him than any other girl besides perhaps me… I thought you ought to know. For your own sake." At this, her smirk became, albeit it had almost seemed impossible at this rate, _even _more smug than before.

_Liar_, Ino branded her inwardly, _you don't get to meet him all that often, since it takes one hour for you to get from Suna and Konoha, and either way, I'm with him all the time, and I would know if he was with you or not._

"Really?" she said amusedly, as though it was the funniest idea she had heard, her eyebrow raising higher. "Because of what I can recall, I've never said I was interested in him."

"Well, maybe not yet, but you don't look very unique to me, so you probably will be… as any other girl who comes close to him. Of course," she added smoothly, "_I_ am not just any other girl – if you didn't know, I'm Temari, one of the royal Sand siblings. Gaara's older sister – he's the Kazekage, the mayor of Suna."

"I knew that," she snapped irritably, revealing her true mood for the moment. "Besides, we've already met before."

"Really?" she imitated Ino's tone from earlier. "Then, you must not be very memorable."

And with that, she promptly exited, leaving a fuming Ino behind.

_That bitch!_ she roared at the top of her lungs, resisting the urge to stomp at the ground (because what good would it do besides ruining her brand-new Gucci pumps?). _That slutty, fugly, disgusting, WHORE! How _dare s_he! I'm at least _KNOWN _for something other than being the sister of the Kazekage!_

She pictured briefly how it'd be stealing Shikamaru from the Bitch's claws – and for a moment, it seemed almost realistic, because it'd not be impossible; few guys resisted her charm

(_she ignored the nagging doubt that Shikamaru was like other guys_)

and almost cackled evilly, akin to a witch or a villain in a cartoon, at the mental image of Temari sobbing hysterically, growing out of at least 5 sizes by eating fast food every day, like in that documentary _Super Size Me_, and then she'd be too fat to get into her brother's office, so she'd be kicked out of her home, bringing shame onto the Kazekage; of course, Ino, being the kind soul she was, would accept her as her _cleanstress_ at the huge mansion in which she and Shikamaru resided…

Her fantasies were cut off by a loud signal from the cell phone she was still clutching in her fist. _New Message From: Sasuke_, the screen informed her. Her heart skipping a beat, she remembered having been in a conversation with him when she had accidentally hung up on him. Feeling slightly guilty for her previous mental movie – which she had so kindly named _The Ultimate Tragedy: Sabaku no Temari's Tragic Life_ – she clicked 'Open', revealing a mere word – or name.

_Ino?_

Although it had nothing else in it – not even a smiley – she still felt a surge of warmth. He had at least _cared_ about her hanging up, and obviously wondered what happened.

_Sorry,_ she texted back swiftly. _I saw something… unpleasant. So, see you at Club Leaf at eight?_

But even as she sent the message and tried to recall the joy from reading his text message, all that'd appear in her chest was a nagging annoyance and the picture of a certain pineapple head entangled passionately with a certain blonde – and that blonde was definitely not her.

Why she even cared was beyond her.

* * *

There were few times when Naruto was speechless.

No matter what one had to say – be it an insult or a compliment, or simply a provocation to start an argument – Naruto _always _had a response; it might not be a response that displayed the very epitome of his intelligence, but it was at least an _answer_.

But as he felt Hinata's (_not curvy, not curvy, _he mentally chanted, _think of her as a flat-chested twelve-year-old, those are _NOT _her boobs that you're feeling against your chest_) body press up against his, all that he could say was, "…"

And all that came to his mind was in the form of, "_…_"

He tried to gather his thoughts, but nothing seemed to piece together; only fragments of random thoughts – like how Hinata's hair smelled of exotic flowers, and he contemplated whether it was her shampoo or her natural scent, or how her eyes seemed to be so _vivid_ even though her eyecolor was white and made her look iris-less – seemed to register.

Hinata herself did not seem as though she was in a hurry to make conversation, either. They kept staring into each other's eyes, when a sudden, loud sound made the two of them jump – Hinata's cell phone, which had obviously fallen out of her pocket, was vibrating quite audibly against the floor.

_Fumikomuze akuseru kake hiki wa naisa sou dayo youru wo nukeru_, Naruto recognized Sasuke's voice singing in one of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s most popular songs, "_Haruka Kanata_", as Hinata swiftly detached herself from him and reached for the cell-phone – but the ringtone faded as abruptly as it had started, and they were left in a tense, embarrassed silence.

"S-so, who was it?!" Naruto heard his own voice saying, sounding far too energetic to sound natural.

"U-um… I-Ino-s-san," she stammered, her cheeks aglow – she now stuttered even more than before; "b-b-but sh-sh-sh-she h-h-hung u-up."

"Er, so, you – you watch Flintstones, Hinata?" He laughed uneasily, and it sounded shrill to his ears. "I didn't know you did that! I do it too! And I _like _it!"

_Hahaha, _he could feel his own lips form, and committed suicide mentally for his excessive, obviously uncomfortable laughter.

"U-um…" She seemed bizarrely confused at this question. "I-I… used to. Wh-wh-when I w-was y-y-younger."

"So why were you – I mean, why did you… bring it up? So suddenly?" Another cue of loud (and stupid, stupid, _stupid_, he groaned inwardly) laughter.

"I.. um… K-K-K-Kakashi-s-san s-s-said I-I, I sh-should s-say th-that to you," replied Hinata in one breath, her blush deepening to an impossible shade of red.

"Oh, is that so?!" he laughed (_stupidly_). "… I didn't, uh, know Kakashi watched that kind of stuff. He's so perverted, I bet he…"

Naruto cut his speech off abruptly, and remembering the direction of his own thoughts just a couple of moments ago when her body had been pressed against his, he changed the topic at an exaggeratingly loud volume with a slight flush; "So! Anyway! You were saying that we should eat… what? Um, onigiri? Or… something?"

_Onigiri?_ he screamed in his thoughts, punching himself. _Why the hell did I say _onigiri_??? Couldn't I come up with something better?_

"W-well… if you w-want onigiri… p-perhaps I c-can ask th-the chef to m-make some…"

Nodding too enthusiastically, he exclaimed, "Yeah! That'd be great, yeah… uh, so you're going, right?" Laughing quite unnaturally again, he speedily added, "I mean, I'd be waaay lost in here! This place is HUGE!"

Having not torn her eyes away from the floor, Hinata nodded in response, too robotically and too fast for it to seem natural, and arose hurriedly, exiting the room. "Bye-bye, see you later, have fun!" he shouted after her.

Resisting the urge to bang his head against the floor – perhaps she'd come back if she heard him do such a thing, and he didn't want to laugh again – he instead chose to kill himself mentally again with the words, _HAVE FUN?!?!_

Burying his face in his hands as he leaned against the wall, he tried to shut out the image – of Hinata's smile, her face, her smell, her _body_ –

_BAD THOUGHTS!_ he bellowed at the top of his mental lungs, _BAD THOUGHTS, NARUTO, BAD!_

_Well, _a sinister voice that sounded like Jiraiya's murmured gleefully, _if I get to be spanked for being bad by her, I wouldn't mind_ –

Screeching loudly (not so inwardly) – and then clapping his hands to his mouth – he committed another mental suicide. _What the _hell _am I thinking about?!_

He remedied himself with thinking that it had been the first time he had been this close to a girl's body; after all, he had only just received his first kiss a day ago. Shutting out the mental Jiraiya voice contemplating loudly how it'd be to kiss Hinata, he instead focused on the image of that first kiss.

The effect was immediate – the tumult quieted down, followed by a hollow ache; the sorrow that had temporarily escaped him returned anew when he pictured her tortured face the morning after their kiss, and her salty tears that he could taste during it.

_Sakura,_ he called out her name in his mind, and her smiling face, the sound of her laughter, was immediately summoned to his conscious.

The smiling face – and the laughter – also summoned by _him_.

Sasuke.

Sakura and Sasuke.

Once a pair that had been as natural as_ Tom_ and _Jerry_, or chocolate fondue and chocolate, or icecream and a cone, now seemed distant, unfamiliar, to his ears.

It was like hearing a song, or a name, he hadn't heard of in a long time.

But yet, even so, it seemed like all he ever thought about nowadays was _them_

(_against his will, of course, as he pushed them away in his mind, but they insisted on coming back_)

and the issue that kept resurfacing again and again – the desire of his best friends' happiness, and the desire of his own, clashing against each other in a sea of guilt and confusion and despair and hope and joy and sadness and _love_ and _hate_ –

And each time they crashed against each other, like two gigantic monsters in an epic battle – reminding him of that American movie, _Transformers_ – he felt absorbed by it, like his entire being depended on the outcome.

Yet, no outcome was ever decided.

Because they both benefited and hurt him, no matter what he chose.

So if the outcome would bring him the equal amount of pain and happiness, why was it so hard to choose between _his_ smile and _theirs_?

* * *

Sakura hated surprises.

The feeling of losing control, of not knowing what was about to happen… she loathed it greatly. Having always been one to plan everything ahead, she hated the feeling of being taken aback, especially if it was an unpleasant surprise – surprise parties or presents were fully acceptable – and now was no exception.

That's why she almost jumped right into the wall behind her at the sight of the approaching person.

"Shit!" she gasped loudly, and then added in a berating tone; "_Tenten_! You scared the hell out of me!"

It was definitely no wonder that she had scared her; the girl emanated murder intent as her hazel eyes were cold, only sparking with wrath, and she looked very much like she'd kill somebody at any given second.

"Sorry," she replied with a scowl. "I'm just…"

Tenten trailed off, her scowl deepening. Arching an eyebrow, Sakura asked, "What's wrong? You seem sort of…"

"Not happy? Mad? So fucking, goddamned _pissed_ I could strangle somebody right now?" She exhaled sharply. "…Yeah."

"Whoa, take it easy." Sakura put up her two hands in a defensive posture. "Don't strangle _me_."

She smiled back, although the smile was suspiciously sinister. "I won't. If you behave."

Being all-too-familiar with her mood swings – the two of them, along with Ino, had been a quite close trio prior to her journey to China – she ignored the feeling of a pricking dark aura. "Okay, so what's the problem?"

"The problem is a certain bastardic asshole –"

"Bastardic is not a word," Sakura interjected her, but quickly retracted at her gaze, which was in the form of shooting daggers. "… Okay, okay, I get the message. Continue."

"The problem is a certain _bastardous _asshole who I just want to beat up, push into a fire, climb up a mountain with and drop him to the bottom of a sea, then drag him out, leave him to freeze almost to death on the North Pole wearing nothing but boxers, and then dress him in a ton of clothes and leave him in the Sahara desert with no water while putting on an entire collection of Miley Cyrus' songs and letting him watch _The Notebook_, _Titanic_, _A Walk To Remember_ and all sob-sob chick flicks on earth. And oh, I want to cut his hair, too, real uneven, and then I'll torture the cut hair in front of him, like dip it in tomato sauce, wrap it around French fries and then barbecue it in front of a fire with all of his hair products and letting him eat the finished product," she said in one breath, her eyes spitting fire as she spoke.

"… Are you talking about Neji?" she asked, trying to hide the twitch she felt in the corners of her mouth.

"Yes, if that's what you want to call the bastardous asshole," Tenten spat angrily.

Drying her face quite pointedly with the side of her palm, Sakura prodded, "What did he do?"

"That's a friggin' long story. To cut it short, let's just say he ticked me off in the worst ways possible."

"He said you were a PMS-prone, insane martial arts whore who has an unhealthy obsession with weapons and has mood swings as often as a pregnant person?" she grinned innocently.

"No," Tenten growled in response, her sour scowl replacing her earlier maddened I'm-ready-to-kill expression.

"Oh, well, forget what I said then. Did he at least try to apologize?"

She snorted. "Oh, yeah, he _tried_."

"Wow, that's new. Hyuuga Neji apologizing." Pausing dramatically, and jerking her head about rapidly, she demanded, "Where're the flying pigs?"

"Ha, ha," laughed Tenten sarcastically. "Very funny, Sakura. I don't even know if _that_ was supposed to _qualify_ as an apology. He left three messages on my phone."

"I thought Ino told him to call you?"

"Wait, did you _know_ about this?" she instead wanted to know, eyes widening.

"Well, we all did. Neji did the mistake of confiding in _Ino_," her grin broadened with an added amount of mischief at Tenten's horror, "and she basically announced it for everyone who wanted to listen once she had the 'counseling session' with him. We were all joking about how you guys seemed like a married couple already without having the honeymoon. Unless you've already had one…," she added meaningfully with a smirk.

"It's not like that!" she shrieked frantically, face turning a quite flattering shade of beetroot.

"Really? You know, the same color looked _dashing_ on Neji when we said the same thing to him."

Her embarrassment evaporating, she instead grinned, and repeated curiously – and somewhat astonished, "Seriously? Neji _blushed_?"

"Yeah… and why do _you _care?" Sakura wanted to know, her evil smirk reappearing.

"I don't," Tenten threw back hotly. "I'm only surprised he's capable of having human reactions."

"Suure," Sakura drawled with a roll of her eyes, and before Tenten could protest, she questioned; "So why are you mad at him if he has already apologized?"

She snorted incredulously. "You should've heard the messages." Imitating Neji's baritone voice, she said robotically; "'Hi. It's me. I'm sorry. Call me. Bye.' 'Why haven't you called yet? This is ridiculous, Tenten. I've already apologized. Call me. Bye.' 'Hi. It's me. Again. I'm sorry. Again. Call me. Bye.'"

"Well. That's… emotional," Sakura managed to remark in-between her fits of laughter.

"EXACTLY! I mean, what kind of apology is that?? Even Uchiha friggin' _Sasuke_ could've done it better!!"

Sakura's laughter faded away at once, and her smile evaporated completely. Adapting an utterly blank face expression, she felt a pang of pain in her chest –

(_"I'm sorry, Sakura."_

_Tears flowing down her cheeks – a screeching Naruto scolding _him_ – _he _looking annoyed, but somewhat apologetic –_

"_Look at me."_

_Obeying him – looking up in those god-forbidden, heaven-sent beautiful eyes she just wants to drown in, even at such a young age –_

"_I'm sorry."_)

- and an equally painful memory.

_Stop thinking about it,_ she berated herself like so many times before. _That was the past. This is the present._

_And you're the only one left in the past._

"Uh-oh. I said something bad, didn't I?" Tenten's voice broke through her sphere of thoughts..

"It's nothing. It's…"

"… Sasuke?" she supplied helpfully.

"No, no," she laughed – but it was humorless, _automatic_. She hated the sound of that laughter; it was the same her parents used to use. "It's just that I'm tired from my hospital shift and –"

"Y'know," Tenten interrupted her, her face expression turning serious as her previous playfulness disappeared, "I know that Ino and Naruto are really unobservant, and Sasuke is as sensitive to other people's feelings as a fucking _rock_, but we're not _all_ idiots, Sakura."

Stunned, her jade orbs widening, Sakura could only stare at her in indescribable astonishment. A ringing silence fell between them – Tenten still staring at her intently, and Sakura returning the stare with unfaltering surprise –

(causing another memory to awaken;

"_This is for you." An object shoved into her hands; looking down, she saw a pair of strawberry-shaped, bright pink earrings._

"_Thanks!" A wide smile._

"_Sakura-chan, I thought you hated surprises!" Disappointment._

"_It's okay –"_

"—_because it's Sasuke-kun!" A smirk spreading across his face at her words.)_

- until Sakura finally broke it, her voice unsteady. "I…"

_We are fighting dreamers!_ the entire _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s voices sang from Tenten's pocket, causing the two girls to jump. _Takami wo mezashite –_

"Hello?" Tenten answered as she put the crimson Sony Ericsson C903 to her ear.

"Tenten!" Ino's voice burst out from the speakers, loud enough for Sakura to hear it, causing her to stiffen visibly. "Heey! You know, I've got this brilliant idea. Club Leaf is having this _huge_ event tonight with a new DJ, who's like this next big thing in _Europe_, and since you totally missed out on NY – which sucked, by the way, we all missed you, especially Neji – and all, I was thinking we all go out clubbing tonight! And_ –_"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down," she cut her off, alarmed. "You're talking a hundred miles per second, girl. What're you on about?"

"_Clubbing_," Ino enunciated slowly and clearly, as though Tenten was too much of an idiot to understand. "Tonight. Club Leaf. New DJ_._"

"Clubbing? _Tonight_?" she repeated in mere disbelief.

"Yeah, clubbing. _Tonight_." The impatience was transparent in the cracks of Ino's enthusiasm. "I already checked with Neji, and he said that he's done with his History essay, and at first he was planning this totally boring thing like watching a documentary on Poland during the First World War or whatever on Discovery Channel, and then I totally convinced him that it was a good chance to apologize to you since you were going to be there too, and _–_"

"Wait a second, I haven't even said I want to _come _yet!"

"Well, who else would have to take care of Hinata while Neji is running around like a madman trying to apologize to you_?_" she asked innocently.

"First of all, he's not that desperate to apologize to me," Tenten retorted dryly. "Second of all, Hinata isn't even allowed to go out clubbing."

"Well… Neji's going to tell Hiashi that he has a meeting with _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and that both of them are required to be present."

"… You convinced Neji to _lie_?" Tenten cried, in a tone that suggested that Ino had just said she would like to give up her career as a model and would rather spend the rest of her life as a hobo, because of her passionate hatred for fashion.

"Technically, it's not a lie, because, we _are_ meeting up, and both of them are required to be there," she responded defensively.

"… If I wasn't going through the many ways to kill you tonight in my head for forcing me to be in the same room with him, I'd applaud you."

"Thank you," she chirped cheerily. "Now, I know that Sasuke, Shikamaru – oh, it's this new guy I've gotten to know – and Naruto will be able to come, and Kiba too. And since you and Hinata are coming too, the only one who's left is Sakura…"

The person in question flinched at the sound of her name; up until now, she had only listened, paralyzed by Tenten's announcement, and Ino's surprisingly timed interruption.

Tenten glanced sideways at her. "She's here with me."

"Great! Tell her that she's coming and that she shouldn't wear that horrible orange dress Naruto gave her for Christmas. I swear, that guy has no taste in clothes. Love you, byeeee!" She made a kissing sound before she hung up, leaving Tenten and Sakura with a beeping, monotonous tone in the silence.

"Ino told me that we're both required to go out clubbing with her tonight. And that you shouldn't wear that orange dress Naruto gave you for Christmas," Tenten restated casually.

"… Yeah… I heard her."

She eyed the pinkette cautiously. "Are you really going to be okay with this?"

"Okay with what? Clubbing with Ino?" There it was again – the unnatural, hatred-instilling laugh. "Yeah, I've got a little jet lag, but I guess most of us do. Trust Ino to be the only one crazy enough to think of going clubbing after 15 hours on a plane and in the middle of the week –"

"You know what I mean, Sakura," she cut across her, ending her babbling.

Her face expression softened. "… I'm fine, Tenten. I promise. Or at least, I'm going to be."

"Well, if you say so…," she replied, but her voice betrayed her; the doubt was completely transparent. "I need to get ready for partying. See you tonight?"

Sakura answered with a smile, and was amazed by how easy it was to summon it; that empty smile she hated as much as the mechanic laughter. The empty smile that was as empty as she felt on the inside. "See you tonight. And oh, Tenten?"

The person in question came to a halt, and looked across her shoulder apprehensively.

"Bastardous is not a word either."

A real grin spread across her face as the bun-haired girl stomped away, swearing curses at her under her breath.

* * *

Hinata had always liked the rain.

Even as a child, she had loved it – the soothing sound of it splashing against the windows, and it'd make the choking heat tear her down less in the summer, when her health was in its most fragile state; besides that, when it rained, she seemed almost _normal_. When the sun shone, the other children would go out and play, whereas Hinata almost always stayed indoors; but when the rain poured, and everybody else was inside too, it was almost like she was one of _them_.

However, the same preference did not seem to apply to the blonde before her, who was glaring at the raindrops smattering against the windowpanes of her room, as though he dared them to continue to fall.

"Damn, it's raining… again," he sighed sulkily and looked very much like a displeased child as he unceremoniously flopped down on Hinata's soft, king-size bed. "And I'm supposed to be _walking_ home, 'cause stupid Sasuke-teme took my bike."

Hiding a smile, she leaned against the window frame as she merely continued to look at the landscape outside; the beauty of the Hyuuga garden never ceased to amaze her, although she spent little time there – as Hiashi seemed to appreciate it as well, the chance of meeting him would be increased if she were to take an interest in visiting the garden more often.

"Aa, i-it's q-quite rainy in th-the f-fall, isn't it?"

Although the tense, nervous atmosphere from before had evaporated – it seemed like food calmed Naruto down quite much, whereas the same could not be applied to her (however, she had been able to at least not hyperventilate after seeing him being reversed back to his normal state as well) – she still stuttered quite considerably, and she preferred not looking at him; she was afraid of looking into his eyes, and staying there for too long.

_It's strange_, she mused for herself, _how much worse it is when somebody's eyes are blue._

"Yeah. I hope it doesn't rain on my birthday," she heard his displeased voice say to her back.

The smile Hinata had been trying to hide showed through. The thought of it even raining on a day when he'd be happy seemed bizarre to her; when he smiled, it was as though she basked in sunshine – not the sort that'd make you feel as though you were in a sauna, but the perfectly warm yet comfortable kind, like sunshine in the end of the spring, the only sunshine Hinata had been able to withstand as a child – and it seemed almost impossible that it'd rain during such circumstances.

"D-don't w-worry, as l-long as N-Naruto-kun is happy, it w-won't rain," she therefore replied cheerily. Just then realizing that she had spoken her thoughts aloud, she was overcome with embarrassment; her sentence hadn't even made _sense_.

Sneaking a peek across her shoulder to see his reaction, she was thusly quite astounded to see that he was grinning widely. "Yeah!"

A silence fell as the smile returned to her face, and she lost herself in thought. Ino had just moments ago sent a text message to Naruto demanding both his and Hinata's presence at Club Leaf, and for some strange reason, Neji had agreed to go along with her plans, excusing it by saying that their presences were required at a _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ meeting when explaining it to Hiashi.

(She strongly suspected Ino had mentioned something about Tenten when trying to convince him to go.)

The thing was, Hinata had no idea what to _wear_.

It seemed like such a simple issue, especially for an heiress with a closet as vast as Hinata's; but the problem wasn't which attire to _wear_, but which attire was _appropriate_ to wear. Truth was, up until now, she had only attended clubs due to the others' requests, and she had often sported the same casual clothing as she had at their concert, having not thought particularly much about how it'd look in a club.

But this was different. This was her first time going out _solely_ for the purpose to go clubbing.

Of course, she had seen pictures – she was isolated from parties, especially teenage ones (the royal Sand siblings' party hadn't counted as it was a formal party), but that didn't mean she was prohibited from _seeing _them. After all, she was acquainted – and supposedly friends – with Ino, renowned celebrity party princess.

_But_, she thought doubtfully with a sinking heart – and some embarrassment – as she recalled Ino's latest party outfit on Facebook (_Is that even a _dress_? _were the words that had crossed her mind), _I don't think Neji-onii-san will be pleased to see me in such clothing._

The fact that his and Tenten's 'newly-wed fights' (as the rest of the group had labeled it) didn't seem to be resolved just yet would probably not add up to Happy Neji-Time, either.

(_Not that it was _ever _Happy Neji-Time. At least, that she had been aware of_)

"So, what're you going to wear for the party?" Landing herself back in reality with a nasty _thud_, she blinked, alarmed, at the sound of Naruto's voice.

"I-I don't k-know…" She looked, somewhat confused, at him. "H-how did you kn-know I was thinking a-about th-that?"

Glee etched itself unto his face as he beamed at her in excitement. "You were? Cool! I'm a _mind-reader_!"

Hinata merely smiled – a smile which somewhat faded as he made his way to her closet next to her bed in front of her. Opening up the doors, he started rummaging through the cloth hangers. "So, let's see… how about this dress?" He held up a navy cocktail dress with a classic portrait collar, then threw it casually on top of her bed as he reached for the first drawer. "Or maybe there's something in here…"

All alarms in Hinata's head went off at the same time as mental images of her underwear being stored in the very same drawer flicked through her mind at top speed. Before she could quite digest the thought herself, she had tackled the blonde from his position and knocked the air out of him; thankfully, they had landed themselves on the bed and not on the floor.

_Or not so thankfully,_ she mentally added as she could feel all hemoglobin cells rush to her face, which was just inches away from his, quite reminiscent of their earlier position.

She withdrew and backed up against the wall with a loud _thump_ faster than anyone could say 'déjà-vu'.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry, N-Naruto-kun!" she piped up in a high-pitched voice that she inwardly cursed. "I…"

"Aah… no, it's okay," he responded, not quite meeting her eye – which was a good thing, probably, because his own face color was not too unfamiliar a shade in comparison to hers. "I guess I'm just too used to do this at Sakura-chan's house… I'm, uh, sorry."

"N-n-no, i-it's m-my f-f-fault," amended Hinata hurriedly. "I-I sh-shouldn't h-have…"

She trailed off, leaving the two of them in deafening silence once more. "Well… I'm just… I'm going to… well, I'll be outside," he spoke up in too much of a rush for it to seem natural and shot out of her room just as swiftly as she had withdrawn from him before.

Sliding down against the wall as her legs gave way, she seated herself onto the floor with a frantically beating heart.

_It really _is _worse when his eyes are blue_, was the random thought that registered as she tried to breathe normally.

A sudden sound of something vibrating on her bedside table interrupted her; rising up and flipping it open to see the message, she did not realize that it was Tenten's cell phone before she had done so.

(She had left it in Hinata's room shortly after returning from her 'walk', as she called it, looking more aggravated than ever.

_Because I'm tired of your dear old idiot cousin and his stupid text messages_, she had angrily explained when Hinata had asked why.)

(She had a feeling that Tenten would've used much less flattering words had Hinata not been the one she was talking to.)

She struggled with herself as she contemplated whether or not she should read the message; after all, she had already opened it, and Tenten would think that she had done so either way; most likely, she'd not be bothered by it, but perhaps Neji would be.

_But then again,_ she reminded herself, _there was nothing Tenten would hide from her._

And thus, her eyes started scanning through the message.

(Although one might doubt it, sometimes even one as saintly as Hinata could have her… well, _unsaintly _moments.)

_Tenten, _the message read, and she could almost hear Neji's irritated tone, _where the hell are you? Not that I've been looking for you, but Daisuke-san might think you've been kidnapped, with the way you disappeared without a sound. Are you going to be at Club Leaf tonight? You better be. If something happens to Hinata-sama, it'll be your fault. P.S. Kiba and Naruto are to escort Hinata-sama to Club Leaf, and I think it'd be wise to go ahead without them. And as much as they display utterly oxymoronic behavior, I trust them with Hinata-sama's safety._

She stifled a giggle; Neji's message and his concern for Tenten was almost completely see-through. Besides the fact that the text message seemed almost as long as an essay in comparison to his usual, one-sentence-text messages, he had also made an effort of trying to find Tenten and speak to her alone.

Why exactly the two of them took so long to realize they were in love with each other, she was only left to ponder.

The temporary joy of thinking of Tenten and Neji as a couple disappeared as she surveyed one of the other names mentioned in the text message. She had had so much on her mind lately that she had been neglecting Kiba; as of recently, he had been the one to always take care of her and make sure she felt alright.

(_Although he always did it anyway, not just recently, and so she knew_)

But she had completely ignored _his _feelings and _his _needs. Did he have anything on his mind? He rarely mentioned his own problems, but she always had a nagging suspicion that he hid his troubles from her; it bothered her, as she wished to help him in all ways possible if he were to have a problem.

It was strange, she thought, as she fingered absent-mindedly the material of the navy cocktail dress before her, how easily he could see through her and know exactly what she was thinking, and yet, after all those years of friendship, she couldn't do the same thing with him.

She thought of what could possibly trouble him; a girl, perhaps? Kiba had had plenty of fleeting romances with fangirls – and before the _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s existence, giggling schoolgirls – but he had never seemed to be _in love_.

Kiba in love seemed bizarre to her; he had always spoken (albeit jokingly, but still) of monopoly and had mostly judged girls by their appearance rather than their personality. But still, if that were the case, she'd be fully supportive and help him as much as possible – if only he were to tell her about it.

If only, indeed.

* * *

Kiba was happy.

No, dammit, he was _happier _than happy.

What with all the crap going on lately in the gang, he didn't quite feel as though he was _qualified_ to feel happy, but still. Clutching the cell-phone tightly in his pocket, he couldn't help the grin that spread across his face as the Hyuuga – naturally a Branch family member – driver who had picked him up slowed down into the parking lot belonging to the Main family.

As he recalled Neji's text message that told him he should pick up Hinata at the Hyuuga compound, he couldn't help but feel a pang of pride.

Neji _trusted_ him. With Hinata's life. (Undoubtedly, he found the Hyuugas rather paranoid, but still. It was not a matter of minor importance; after all, she was the heiress of the Hyuuga corporation.)

For that paranoid person to actually leave her in his hands required a _lot_ of faith. It felt bizarrely as though Kiba had made an impression on Hinata's father – although he knew that he'd never do so – but somehow, the whole thing made him feel, as strange as it sounded, like a _boyfriend_.

Not only any boyfriend, but _her_ boyfriend.

He ignored the pricking thought that Hinata did not see him as such, but instead focused on his own giddiness. At least he could play make-believe tonight; it seemed as something a boyfriend would do – pick up his girlfriend at her home, gain the trust of her family…

Although Kiba had had his fair share of girlfriends, he had never seen them as _real _girlfriends. Sure, he had picked them up at their house, taken them out on dates, _kissed_ them, and sometimes gone farther than that, but he had never _cared_ about them – it was all physical, all of it. He had never cared to know their favorite dishes by heart, their worst childhood memory, or care to notice what they thought about his cologne –

(_he knew that _her_ favorite dish is cinnamon rolls, _her _worst childhood memory was accidentally spilling juice on her father during an important dinner, _her _thoughts about his cologne was that it smelled 'good, like Kiba', and that was enough for him to keep it_)

- because all of that, he reserved for _her_.

Even if she didn't know it. Even if she perhaps wasn't even willing to take that position in his heart.

But as pathetic as it sounded, he was okay with that, at least for tonight. He could play her make-believe boyfriend, and even though that was far from what he would've chosen to be had he had the power, he was content.

_For tonight_.

Or so he had thought when _two _figures started approaching the car; Hinata who was blushing to the very roots of her hair, and judging by the way her lips trembled, was probably stuttering quite a lot, too – and _Naruto_.

He felt numb, as though he had been out in a wintery cold for too long and then walked into a hot room, as all he could was stare at the approaching pair as he got out of the car.

Naruto was not different from his ordinary self – adorning a casual, navy t-shirt with a white pattern and text on it, a black jacket, and a pair of washed-out, slightly torn jeans and black Converse; but as usual, he was looking very enthusiastic, and it lit his face up considerably – and with a pang of awareness (and jealousy), Kiba realized that there was a slight blush adorning his cheeks.

Hinata, on the other hand, looked gorgeous – more beautiful than he had ever seen her – with her hair pulled into a half-messy bun, leaving some strands to frame her face along with her forehead-covering fringe; a navy cocktail dress hugged her body, displaying the curvy body she mostly hid with unflattering, half-baggy clothes; it had a low-cut portrait collar, showing off her slender neck and shoulders, but also exposing some cleavage.

But what was out of the world was her _smile_.

She looked so wonderfully happy, so _I-could-die-right-now-and-I-wouldn't-care_ happy, the kind of happy Kiba had always wanted to make her look, that it felt like somebody had just shot a bullet right into his heart.

_They look great together,_ were the words that crossed his mind as he looked at the two of them, and he instantly hated himself – and _him_ – for thinking so. What was he doing, pouring salt into his own wounds?

"Oh, Kiba," Naruto realized with surprise, and it was only then that Hinata tore his eyes away from his face, "you're going with us, too?"

"Yeah," he responded dully, and at that precise moment, he felt an immense hatred against the blonde – a hatred he knew that Naruto didn't deserve, but all the same; he absolutely _hated _him right then.

"Great!" He beamed. "So I guess that Ino got you too, huh?"

"Uh-huh," was his unenthusiastic response as Hinata approached him; for a mere second, Naruto didn't exist anymore as his eyes could only take in her, and her beauty – and then he realized that he wasn't the only one who could see it, and that _he_ had seen it too, before Kiba, and all the hatred came pouring back into him like venom.

"Kiba-kun," she greeted with a tiny smile, to which he only muttered a 'Hey' before the threesome stepped into the car.

"Wow, Hinata, your car is _really _cool," Naruto commented as he seated himself in the left corner; Hinata sat in the middle, and Kiba leaned against the window in the right, refusing to meet anybody's eye. "Is this a BMW?"

"I-I've n-no i-idea," stammered Hinata, but even without looking, Kiba could _hear_ the smile in her voice. "I… I-I can a-ask N-Neji-onii-san l-l-later, i-if you w-want."

"Cool!" There was a pause, and then; "So, Kiba, what were you up to after we got back?"

"Nothing," he grumbled sullenly. "And you?"

He hid the anxiety in his voice – what _was_ Naruto doing there? He was with Sakura, after all, and he loved her – surely he and Hinata didn't meet up behind Sakura's back? But Naruto wasn't like that, but still… why had _he_ been at the compound when even Kiba had never been invited inside?

"Oh, we were just doing our group project," he answered cheerfully, and Kiba felt relief surge through his veins; "but, uh… we didn't get much done."

The embarrassed silence that fell in the car made him want to pull out his hair.

What exactly had happened? Why didn't they get much done? Had something actually _happened_? What had they done; flirted? Kissed each other? Could they possibly have had…

_No_, he cut off himself before he could even _think _about it, but all the same, he felt aggravated that Neji hadn't been there. What was he doing? Wasn't he overprotective of Hinata, always putting her safety first? Who knew what could've happened with Naruto? Or did he trust Naruto as much as he did Kiba?

"Um, Kiba-kun…?" Hinata spoke cautiously, and he realized with a start that the conversation had progressed without him participating in it. Doing the mistake to jerk his head to see her, he once again felt mesmerized by her white orbs.

And before he could even think of anything else, guilt pierced through him like sharp knives.

How could he? Hinata was _happy_. That was what he had always wanted – her happiness. He had always pictured that the day when Naruto opened his eyes to her, the day when Sakura went back to Sasuke and the whole world returned to the way it should be, he'd nobly step aside. He was her _friend_, nothing more – _never_ anything more.

So why was it hard for him to let her have her happiness?

"It's nothing," he murmured as he turned his head away again. After an uncomfortable pause, Naruto talked again, per usual, and Hinata replied; and he could almost hear it, hear that _never-wake-me-up-if-this-is-a-dream_ joy she was careful not to leak through.

Kiba didn't speak another word until they reached Club Leaf.

* * *

Sasuke _hated_ it.

All of it – clubs, discos, parties in general. They emanated _noise_, and as a person who was particularly appreciative of silence, he _loathed_ it.

Perhaps he was being somewhat of a hypocrite – after all, he was in a rock band (with Kiba and Naruto, nonetheless – and his girlfriend was Ino). But even so, the noise _they _forced him to endure every day wasn't worse than the loud techno that seemed to vibrate through every cell of his body, or the loud screams and laughter from the people inside. (Not to mention the squeals of the fangirls who wanted to catch a glimpse of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ in Club Leaf's VIP lounge.)

Leaning against the rail of the petite indoor balcony of the lounge that overlooked the huge dance floor, he caught sight of some people he recognized; Kiba, who looked as though he already was drunk (which he probably was) with his arms slung around the shoulders of two all-too-willing (dyed) blondes; Neji, who tried to speak to Tenten for the umpteenth time the same night whilst the latter had grabbed hold of some random boy and started dancing with him some distance away to avoid the previous; Naruto and Shikamaru, who were drinking at the bar, whilst Ino drew quite some attention as she went crazy on the dancefloor in front of the DJ booth.

(It caused even more attention as she had a quite revealing zebra-print halter neck top, and a barely existent denim skirt which just managed to cover her ass, as well as black stilettos.)

Sasuke, on the other hand, was content with staying put in the VIP lounge sipping on a glass of Tequila Sunrise (underage drinking was definitely no problem for celebrities – especially if they were gorgeous).

His eyes traveled to his girlfriend again; she had been acting strange all night. He hadn't received a reason to why she had hung up, but she had been strangely hyperactive ever since, and had acted 'troublesome in general', as Shikamaru had put it – drinking excessively much, screaming while she was talking, and dancing as though if she were to stop, she'd flail and die.

But what was bothering him the most wasn't even the music (which was beginning to give him a headache), or Ino's weird behavior.

Taking a quick glance across his shoulder, immense irritation took over as he surveyed the two people left in the VIP lounge – Sakura, who apparently was in no mood for dancing, and the Hyuuga heiress.

Even though her presence alone was annoying enough, it wasn't even what irritated him so much. She was also dressed _inappropriately_ in an over-sized, off-shoulder white t-shirt with "LOVE LOCKDOWN" written on the front in bold, black font, high-heels with shiny, black straps that crossed her feet like a cobweb, and her roseate hair had been pulled back into a messy horsetail, revealing large, silver, hoops.

And then it was _that_.

That stupid, goddamned skirt – if that little black piece of material could even be _considered _as a piece of clothing.

(_the fact that Ino's skirt was shorter didn't even seem quite as inappropriate to him, because that was _Ino)

Sasuke felt sorely tempted for tearing off his navy sports' jacket with white stripes and throw it onto her legs, but besides the fact that it was completely _strange_, she also made frequent visits to the others downstairs, and would at some time discard it anyway.

"My, my, if it isn't the hag," an unfamiliar voice spoke, and swirling around, Sasuke saw a pale-skinned, black-haired guy approach Sakura as she had stood up on her way out of the lounge. A grin plastered onto her face as she recognized him – it was Sai, a student in Tenten's and Neji's class who had shortly after Sasuke's departure gotten to know the rest of the group. All Sasuke knew about him was that he worked in the fashion industry, and that he received exceptionally good marks in school despite his time-craving part-time job.

"Sai," she stated aloud, and a tiny smile adorned her face. Sasuke inwardly wondered how it was so easy for her to smile at others, when she hadn't even met his eye the entire evening. "I haven't seen you in _ages_!"

"Yet, you look as ugly as ever," he remarked, and then, his eyes traveled to her legs. "Or, well, a little better, I've to add."

Sasuke wondered how it'd feel with his fist connecting with the guy's face.

Raising an eyebrow, she smirked, "Thanks. You look pretty good yourself."

"I never said you looked _good_," he corrected her. "Perhaps good enough for my penis, but nothing else."

Punching him would be too easy. Perhaps pushing him off the rail? But then he'd damage innocent people below on the dancefloor…

"If you want, I can show you how good you can be to it," he added, to which Sakura's eyebrow merely rose higher.

Screw the innocent people. Push him off the rail it is. He hid a smirk as he pictured the sound of Sai's crunching skull crashing against the floor…

"You might want to deal with my _boyfriend_ if you try," she instead pointedly remarked.

"Is it that guy over there?" Sai asked, nodding in Sasuke's direction; the two looked his way as Sasuke swore under his breath that they had caught him observing them. "Because he's been shooting death glares my way some time now."

"Nooope," answered Sakura with a slightly confused frown as she made the 'P' pop, "that's _Ino_'s boyfriend."

"Ino's boyfriend, huh," Sai replied, and the knowing – and amused – face expression that reminded Sasuke of his brother made him grit his teeth in annoyance. "Well. Speaking of which, I came here looking for her."

"I think she's on the dancefloor, actually. She's been dancing all night…" She trailed off with a distant gaze; she probably worried for her best friend, Sasuke concluded. After all, he wasn't the only one who had noticed she was being strange.

"Right. Well, if you see her, do me a favor and forward to her that she has been approved to be a model for the seasonal Versace show in Tokyo – and that she should be grateful, because _I_'m the one who approved her to be a model for _my _collection." His smile widened a little. "I guess I'll see you there, ugly hag."

"Whatever, penis man," Sakura waved him off dismissively, returning his smile to his back as he left the lounge once more, leaving them to delve in the silence, only broken by the noise below.

Her gaze slowly wandered to Sasuke, who had yet to stop looking at her – she looked hesitant as she started to step towards him; he felt his own feet tingling to near hers, but kept them steadily on the ground as he continued to lean against the rail.

"Sas -," she began, but was interrupted by a loud hoot announcing the presence of a certain female blonde – and she immediately halted.

"Saaaaakuuuuraaaaa!" she shrieked as she flung her arms around the pinkette's neck, steadying herself on her. "Where've you _been _all night? I haven't seen you ONCE on the dancefloor!"

"I'm just not in the –," the roseate-haired, slightly distressed best friend responded, but was immediately cut off by Ino again.

"LET'S GO DRINK!" she announced, pumping her fist into the air enthusiastically as she pulled up Hinata as well, swaying from side to side as she led the stuttering girl towards the exit, slinging her other arm around the pinkette's shoulders to drag her along on the way.

"I-I-Ino-s-san, I d-don't th-think this is a go-"

"Hinata! _Sakura_!" Ino stopped abruptly, staring at the two of them accusingly as she whipped her head from one to the other. "New York _sucked_ without the two of you! Now you do me a favor and cheer me up by DRINKING!"

"Ino, we were th –," Sakura began, but once again didn't get the chance to finish her sentence.

"Do I mean _nothing_ to you, Sakura?" the blonde howled at the top of her lungs as she looked close to tears. "Can't you even _drink_ for once for _my _sake?"

"I –" This time, she stopped herself as she saw the tears running down her best friend's cheeks. Reluctantly, she answered; "… Alright…"

"YAAAAY!" Ino's tears dissipated at once as she once again enthusiastically started pulling along the two other girls towards the exit, and even sang (quite off-key) to the the current song playing, Kanye West's _Love Lockdown,_ as they disappeared down the stairs towards the bar, leaving Sasuke alone to revel in as much peace as it was possible to achieve in all the noise.

* * *

"Kiba-_kun_," she breathed against his ear with a giggle as her straightened, blonde strands tickled his neck, "you're so _sexy_."

"Tell me something I don't know," he merely grinned as he lifted the glass of – what was it? Absolut Vodka? Tequila? Or one of the girls' Bloody Mary? He wasn't even sure anymore; he could barely even taste the drink.

The arrogance might've been off-putting to any other girl – he definitely knew one that would not appreciate it – but these two (desperate, fangirly, shallow) weren't fazed by it. They merely giggled as the other blonde – Clara or Claire or whatever she had said her name was (even though she was as Asian as him), pulled herself closer by putting her arm around his neck, kissing his cheek.

"Kiba-_kun_," she whispered in an attempt to be seductive, "you like us, right?"

"Sure I do," he responded lightly as he downed another half-empty glass of… well, alcohol it was for sure.

"Show us how much you like us," the other blonde – Candy? Or Ginger, or something that was edible – demanded as she seated herself onto his lap, staring straight into his eyes hungrily.

Without another word, he pushed her face closer, and kissed her, crashing her lips against his.

Their tongues fought a wordless battle as their hands roamed everywhere; touching every part of her body, and squeezing where he saw fit, he tried to get rid of the image

(_of _that_ image, of her immense happiness and his grin, and how _he_ would never be able to make her look like that_)

stuck in his mind, as though he could cleanse it from his head and force it into the girl's mouth instead.

And perhaps neither of the girls who kissed him on his lips and his neck were _her_.

Perhaps, if it had been _her_, he would've kissed her differently, felt differently if she had been the one touching him, kissing him, whispering those words in his ear.

Perhaps neither of them would even be able to be compared to _her_, and were _her_ exact opposites

(_their anorexic thin bodies in comparison to _her_ natural, curvy one; their dry, straw-like dyed blonde hair in comparison to _her_ soft, natural dark one; their seductive voices that disgusted him in comparison to _hers_, and the way they said his name_)

but that was okay, he drunkenly decided as he groped Clara's or Candy's ass, whoever it was that was humping him, it was okay for tonight.

It was okay for tonight when all he wanted was to forget the smile he loved so much.

* * *

"Where's everyone else?" Ino shouted over all the noise as she approached them.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. The blonde was barely able to _walk_; she steadied herself on her two peers, and she had even lost one of her high-heels.

_How can Sasuke let her get wasted like that? Doesn't he care?_

"Kiba's off with some blondes," Naruto informed her. "And Neji's off looking for Tenten, wherever she is now on the dancefloor. What're you girls up to?"

"Noothing," she twittered with a huge grin as she flopped down onto the bar stool beside him. "We're just going to have a drink. Are you going to join us?"

The other blonde shook his head as Ino waved the bartender over, ordering drinks for herself and the two other girls, one who looked rather grim, and the other who looked quite nervous. "Nah, someone needs to be sober tonight, or else none of us will be able to get home," he replied. He glanced over at Sakura questioningly as he parted his lips to ask something, but Ino interrupted him by knocking the air out of him by slapping him on the back quite forcedly.

"Don't worry, your little _darling_ is going to be fine," she laughed at an excessively loud volume even for being in a fully packed club, "Somebody needs to take her alcohol virginity, after all! She can't go through life without ever being drunk. Right, Hinata?"

All eyes turned towards the dark-haired Hyuuga as her cheeks reddened, particularly as Naruto's piercing blue eyes still held an unspoken question mark in them. "R-right," she murmured loud enough for them to hear.

"Well, then!" She pumped her fist into the air again excitedly as she gulped down half of the bright red Melon Fever vodka cocktail she had ordered, and then gestured at the other girls to do the same. "If you guys ain't gonna join us, then you better be _off_, hooomaays! 'Cause we ain't gonna have no guys at our _GIRL BONDING TIME_!"

She laughed loudly once more, almost falling off the stool in her fits of laughter, only stopping momentarily to swallow some more of her cocktail. Turning towards the bartender, she screamed, "A White Bull, _s'il vous plait_ amigo!"

Turning towards the guys again as Hinata and Sakura started slowly drinking the Cosmopolitans Ino had ordered for them, she grinned maniacally, "What're you guys waiting for? SHOO!"

Looking doubtful, Naruto slowly withdrew into the crowd with a hesitant 'see you later, then', but Shikamaru stayed put, looking gravely at the blonde before him. She was looking as eye-catching as ever, even with her hair slightly wild after all the dancing, and with only one shoe, but something was off.

"Ino…," he began, but sensing the concern in his voice, she stared into his eyes with the same cover girl-smile that had been plastered onto billboards in various parts of Japan, the same (beautiful) smile she had greeted him with the first time they met.

"I'm fine, Shikamaru," she told him, but her voice cracked as she did so. "Just go."

The last words were almost a plea, in comparison to her earlier outright demands – eyes still not leaving her face, which had adapted an odd expression – he slowly turned and left, the last glimpse of her glass-like, fake smile etched into his mind.

* * *

It was minutes to midnight.

Sasuke walked out onto the balcony on the other side of the lounge – the balcony with a view of the streets outside.

He had not left the VIP lounge for almost four hours, and even with the occasional drinks he had mixed up himself at the VIP lounge's exclusive bar, he was getting _bored _out of his mind.

And his headache had worsened at least tenfold.

Muttering curses under his breath at Naruto who had forced him to come via text messaging, threatening to eat all the tomatoes he kept at home otherwise, he leaned against the rail of the balcony like he had done on the other one opposite of the one he was currently situated on.

The streets below him were deserted, and much more peaceful than the atmosphere he was currently forced to be in; he longed to be there, taking a walk. It had always been one of his hobbies – walking. Naruto had once deemed it 'boring', and _she_ had once deemed it as 'weird' – but it was the only place where he found peace. Others found peace in specific places, like spas or their own home, but Sasuke hated being stuck in one place – like he was now.

He especially preferred walking _there_.

He was forbidden to go there, of course – he was careful to only show his presence at times he knew they wouldn't be there, and if he was unlucky enough to come across one of them, he'd quickly hide.

The Uchiha mansion.

The place where he had spent the first 13 years of his life, the residence in which he had grown up and had sleepovers with _them_, the house in which the rest of his family was.

The place where the rest of his future was originally supposed to be – and where it _would_ be, if some kind of miracle occured. And then, the pause button on his life would be undone, and he'd go back to how everything was again.

Reset and press play.

But he knew he was wrong. He knew he was the only one living in the past when everyone and everything had already moved on into the present, in the oncoming future, whilst he was stuck in _that_ place looking through memories that had once made him (hide a) smile, but now only made him clench his fists in rage.

All because of _her_.

He was supposed to hate her, he knew that. He had tried. He had even convinced himself that he had succeeded.

So why did it affect him so much?

Why did everything she did, everything she said, seemed to be able to affect him? It was almost as though he _had_ rewound his life back to his past again – but yet, cruelly, not entirely. All he had rewound was the light he had once seen her in, the light he had banished, and the light that _she did not deserve_.

She had ruined his entire life.

And he was supposed to hate her.

So why could one single smile make him feel as though he didn't _care_ that she had destroyed everything he had once cared for?

All of his ambitions, all of the predictions of his bright future, all of it lay in a heap of broken things buried deep inside of him. And that was only half of the things she had demolished.

(_the fact that she had broken something more specific than just his past and future, he didn't wish to think of_)

So why did he wish to smile back at her when she smiled? Why did he still desire to know her troubles and cure her of them whenever he saw her frown? Why did he still feel so goddamned _bothered_ and _angry_ and _jealous_ when that idiot Sai had flirted with her?

He wasn't really sure if he wanted to know the answer.

"Sasuke-kun?"

The familiar name, the familiar voice

(_the familiar extra heartbeat at that equally familiar suffix_)

made him freeze as pair of arms wound themselves around his neck from behind. The familiar floral smell of her shampoo (had she not changed her favorite brand of shampoo since that time?) hit his nostrils like a wave when he suddenly registered another scent from the breath she was currently gusting onto his neck.

"Sakura," he said as he narrowed his eyes, "are you _drunk_?"

* * *

**_I keep your love locked down, you lose_**

**_

* * *

_**

Seriously, I just had this freaky inspiration kick and wrote down this entire chapter in less than 4 days. I think it's a record, folks! (Although it might've something to do with that this chapter was planned to be a bit shorter than the rest...) So, yeaah. I hope you guys are happy with the quick update, even if the chapter was a bit shorter than usual.

And by the way, you guys disappoint me!! You didn't think I'd let you off that easy with such a predictable cliffie, did you?? You should know by now that I DO THE UNPREDICTABLE! (... or so I would like to think. At least I'm known for this in real life... -ZE ANGST-) Well, don't worry, the whole 'Proserpina' plan wasn't all for nothing, it's just a matter of time when it's actually set into action ;) I'm just going to keep you guys wondering when it's gonna happen until then.

On a side-note, I've to say... I'm in love with Kiba!! I mean, seriously, I feel so sorry for him. (I even added some more Kiba screentime in this chapter just becuase I feel so sorry for him, even if the screentime equaled torture. That poor guy.)

(_ME, AKA THE QUEEN OF ALL THAT IS GOOD, PINK AND BEAUTIFUL_: COME TO MOOMA AND CRY YOUR HEART OUT, MY SON! -stretches out arms towards Kiba-  
_Kiba_: Hell no, you freaky evil author who tortures me all the time!!!  
_ME, AKA MICHAEL JACKSON'S UNKNOWN LOVER SO I SHOULD GET SOME CASH TO BUY THOSE HIGH-HEELS I SAW AT BIANCO, YEAH?_: ZE ANGST ;.; )

And it just struck me: does nobody have anything to say about Neji?? I mean, everybody comments Ino (no duh, 'cause she's one of the main character) and Naruto and (again, duh) SasuSaku, and even occasionally Tenten and even more frequently Kakashi, who has less screentime than Neji, but nobody even cares about the poor guy, lol.

And also: I HATE TO WRITE NARUHINA FLUFF. IT IS SO GODDAMN ANNOYING. I keep having to rewrite it all the time because I keep forgetting Hinata's stupidly shy character. It's not like I write her to be like Tenten in the beginning, but it's just that she's EVEN more shy than I made her, and then I'll have to rewrite the scene. Afghlsfjk. Tenten is the easiest one to write, next to Ino, for some strange reason.

(AND I KNOW YOU GUYS MISS KAKASHI IN THIS CHAPTER, BUT HE WAS ONLY SUPPOSED TO BE A MINOR CHARACTER. I WILL TRY TO MAKE HIM APPEAR MORE OFTEN TO ADD SOME HILARITY TO ALL ZE ANGST.)

Oh, just a quick question by the way -- who's your fav character in this fic??

And don't forget to check out my new fic, The Uchihas Wear Gucci! (By the way, what do you think of a fic idea I have,** 25 Hours a Day**? It's about a high school reunion for everyone (NOT A CONTINUATION TO ANY OF MY EXISTING FICS) when everybody has sort of lost contact with each other and it's all awkward, and they've got these freaky tasks to do, like crash a high school prom and pretend to be students and stuff. And oh, of course they've got a total messed up past, but it's humor, not angst n.n)

I love reviews. Especially long ones. THEY MAKE ME SMILE. (sorry for the bad pun)

Now be a good slave and PUSH THAT REVIEW BUTTON, BABY, AH-HAH, BUT YOU KEEP FRONTIN --

I will stop singing old PCD songs if you review, yeah?


	10. o9: breathing

****

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Unfortunately. And neither do I own Yellowcard and their song "Breathing", no matter how much I wish I did.

**WARNING: **Extreme OOCness due to drunkenness, fatal randomness and a lot of fluff ahead. (With its usual spice of angst, but GOOD MORNING.)

**

* * *

**

I remember this one time when Naruto's dad was drinking sake.

_(And me and Naruto were completely awed that his dad was so cool, drinking alcohol, while Sasuke acted like it was nothing, but I could see the curiosity in his eyes)_

I also remember very clearly that we were begging him to let us try it.

_(Because we had gotten over our "let's-just-be-kids" phase and gotten into "I-want-to-be-an-adult" phase of the extremely mature age of 10)_

Kushina-san (calling her anything else would result in an immediate and extremely painful death) gave him a warning glance, but Minato-oji-chan just smiled at us.

_("You want to try it, huh?")_

And kids as we were, we nodded in excitement.

_(Only to try it and spray it all over the kitchen table, coughing at the bad taste, while Kushina-san threatened to kill us while wiping off the rejected alcohol)_

It's like love, Minato-oji-chan had told us with a wide grin, and Kushina-san had smacked him on the head and called him cheesy.

_("Because love is like alcohol. Sometimes it's intense enough to burn your throat, sometimes it's like a small, but steadily growing flame. Sometimes it's sweet, sometimes it's sour, but even though you know you're running the risk to lose your mind because of it, you just can't stop it.")_

Then, to Naruto's horror, Sasuke's blank-faced surprise and Kushina-san's and Minato-oji-chan's amusement, I swore an oath.

_("If love is like that, then I swear not to fall in love!")_

But promises are made to be broken.

* * *

**o9.**

"_Ooooh, what a niiight, what a beaaaaautifuuuul niiiiiight –_"

Sasuke felt as though his head was going to split to pieces, detonate like an atom bomb and rain brain substance and blood all over the pavement.

"_- and we call it BEEEELLLAA NOOOOTTTEEE!_"

He didn't quite feel inclined to agree with the lyrics the pinkette was currently (_howling_) singing into his left ear as he tried to steady the waggling girl, who was swaying dangerously from side to side.

"Dammit, Sakura, how much did you drink?" he instead wondered as he tried to heave her back into a standing position as she was about to slump down onto the ground.

"_LOOOK AT THE SKIIES! ALL THE BEAUTIFUL STARS… I MEAN EYES… ALL THE STARS, THEY'VE EYES! ON THIS LOVELY BEEEEEEEELLAAA NOOOOTTTEE!_"

"Stop screaming, Sakura."

"I'm SINGING," she shrieked, making him almost deaf, and he could almost hear the expression mark, "not _SCREAMING_! 'Cause this is _THRILLER_!" Breaking free from his grasp, she almost knocked him on the head as she started move her arms randomly like an octopus dancing belly-dance, whilst wearing a random strange grimace as she approached him. "_THRILLER NIGHT_!"

"Say rawr, Sasuke-kun," she said as she put one of her hands forward like a misshapen claw. "_RAWR_!"

As she leaned forwards in an attempt to be frightening, she instead fell backwards onto her bottom for the fiftieth time the same evening; Sasuke had already gotten accustomed to looking anyplace else but her quite visible underwear (again, he damned the way too short black skirt) when she did so.

And they had barely even reached the end of the street on which Club Leaf was situated.

_We'll never get to our actual destination if we keep going like this_, he thought miserably as he massaged his temples, ignoring the drunken wailing of '_Rawr! RAWR!_' that Sakura kept making.

Heaving a sigh, he turned her back to her as he crouched down into an almost sitting position. "Get on my back, Sakura."

She gasped audibly as she got up, standing as steadily as a horse on its hind-legs in 20-inch stilettos. "_Sasuke_! Not in MJ's memory! That's bad, _bad_ stuff that's not allowed for innocent little kids like MJ to hear!"

He clenched his teeth. Was it even possible to be more annoying than a drunken Sakura? (_Yes,_ a voice that sounded like Kakashi's wisely stated in his mind, _try drunken Naruto PLUS drunken Sakura with Kakashi's porn. And a portable stereo. __**Shut up,**_ he threw back at the mental voice.) "Just. Get. On. My. Fucking. Back."

"You want me to fuck your back?" she asked with innocent confusion. "But that's _impossible, _Sasuke-kun! Physically I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E!" Sasuke could hear her giggling, and knew that it was a prelude to – "Da-da-da-DA! Da-da-da-DA! Da-da-da-DA… DA-DA! MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, YEAH!"

- another song. And dammit, he had been right. _Can somebody press the mute button on her, please? _he thought sarcastically (and half-hopefully).

"I'm going to CARRY you home, idiot," he snapped exasperatedly.

"You look like a froggie frog when you sit like that, Sasuke-kun! Are you gonna do the poopie-poo, too?" she intelligently answered.

"JUST GET ON MY BACK, HARUNO."

"Aww, you're no fun, Sasuke-kun." He knew she was pouting, but he merely rolled his eyes as she unceremoniously climbed onto his back (and almost quite literally kicking his ass in the process) as they finally, _finally _started walking, when she suddenly gasped;

"OH MY GOD, SASUKE-KUN! LOOK, _LOOK!_ There's a SHOOTING STAR!" Pointing upwards at the sky, she hit him (quite hard) with her elbow in the process.

"Where?" he wanted to know as he followed her finger. _Why am I looking?_ he inwardly grumbled.

She slapped his (_poor, victimized, about to split apart)_ head with quite a force as she giggled loudly. "HERE, you idiot! Sasuke-_baka_-kun! Baka-kun! Baka-baka-BAKA-kun! Because Baka-baka-baka-BAKA's kun head is as big as ze moon in ze nait-o skai-o. And it's a beautiful niiight, because… _OOOOH WHAT A NIIIIGHT! WHAT A BEAAAAUTIFUUUL NIIIGHT!_"

_I will never,_ he decided as he tried to concentrate on breathing and not throw her off in the canal they were passing by, _ever let her go near alcohol again._

_Or easier, I will never, ever go near _her _again_.

It was promise he knew was impossible to keep, but at the moment, he had other things to think about (thankfully). "Sakura, you're not making sense."

"Yes, because ZE MOON –" At this, she poked his head quite roughly, " - is IN MY HEAD! Get it? ZE MOON! YOUR HEAD! IS IN FRONT OF ME! SO IT'S IN MY HEAD!" The pinkette laughed at the top of her lungs, and would've killed his eardrums had they not already been bleeding due to the way she had been shrieking the last half-hour.

_Half-hour?_ he mentally demanded. _Don't you mean an eternity?_

"…"

"You know what, Sasuke-kun?" asked Sakura innocently as her (loud, _freaking_ I-want-to-kill-your-already-dying-head loud) laughter had died down.

"What?"

"From behind, your hair looks like a chicken's _ass_," she said with an important and curious tone, as though she had just made an amazing discovery.

"…"

"It's dashing, really. I mean, seriously – imagine that. The next 'in' hairstyle… A CHICKEN'S ASS." Deepening her voice to a lower, more baritone man's voice, she proceeded dead-seriously; "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I'm here to tell you a piece of _shocking _news! All over the world, we've received reports that people have started to change their hairstyles into CHICKEN'S ASSES! Old ladies from Alaska to Thailand have been fainting at the quite inappropriate sight. It is said to be inspired by a certain Uchiha Sasuke –"

"Have I told you that you're annoying?" he retorted tiredly (and without a doubt, quite _annoyed_).

"You're such a _meanie_, Sasuke-kun! Now I forgot my very important reportage! WHAT ABOUT THE WORLD, SASUKE-KUN? YOU'VE ROBBED THEM OF MY IMPORTANT REPORTAGE! HOW WILL THE CHICKENS IN BEVERLY HILLS SURVIVE? HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO THE OVERLY CONSUMING 90210 WANNABES? ARE YOU TRYING TO STEAL THEIR LOUIS VUITTON PURSES?! I NEVER THOUGHT YOU'D SINK SO LOW, SASUKE-KUN!"

"…"

"You know what, Sasuke-kun?" she spoke up as angelically as before.

"What?" he inquired, irritated, as he tried to focus on walking ahead (_slightly grateful for the fact that Konoha's streets were abandoned by night on weekdays_) and his surroundings instead of the quite distracting manner she kept breathing on his neck (and also, her excessive, _annoying_ talk).

"I CAN TURN MY BRA INSIDE OUT WITHOUT TAKING IT OFF! YOU WANNA SEE?"

"… _No_."

"ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY YOU DON'T WANNA LOOK AT MY BREASTS? ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY THAT MY BREASTS AREN'T GOOD-LOOKING ENOUGH FOR YOU? ARE YOU?!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs.

He could feel his cheeks heat up slightly at the quite uncomfortable topic, with good reason. "Don't be ridiculous, Sakura."

"So my breasts ARE good-looking, then?" she wanted to know cheerily.

"……."

"You know what, Sasuke-kun?" said Sakura with the same, curious childish voice like that of the purest angel.

"_What_?" he snarled impatiently.

"This feels like old times."

His face expression softened, as his frown dissipated. "… Aa."

"Sasuke-kun?"

"What now?" he sighed.

"I love you."

* * *

_Something I've been keeping  
Locked away behind my lips  
I can feel it breaking free…_

* * *

Although patience is considered to be a virtue, Naruto had never quite agreed.

Especially not when he was bored and alone in Club Leaf on a Wednesday night (_only Ino would come up with the idea to go clubbing after an 15-hour-flight and with P.E with Gai-sensei the next morning_, he thought), and Shikamaru had _promised_ him that he'd be back soon, after having hurriedly disappeared after catching sight of something, or someone, whatever it was.

But it had now been – Naruto shot a glance at his cell-phone screen in front of him – _15 minutes_, and he still wasn't back.

"Naruto-_kun_," a voice purred in his ear as a pair of hands started roaming on his chest. "Have you _missed_ me?"

"Er…" Naruto looked, somewhat uncomfortably, across his shoulder, coming face to face with a blue-eyed blonde who looked very much like a failed Ino-clone (complete with Ino's signature perfume, Paris Hilton's _Can Can_); brightening up somewhat, he realized that he actually _recognized _this person. "Sumiko, right?"

"That's _right_," said Sumiko with a seductive smile as she pulled him closer – and was she _rubbing her breasts against his back_? – and breathed an unmistakable scent of alcohol onto his face, making him squint in disgust. "I'm so glad you recognize me, Naruto-_kun_."

She swished with her blonde hair, tickling his nostrils. Feeling sorely tempted to sneeze, he said in one breath, "Yeah, you're Ami's group partner, aren't you? For Iruka-sensei's assignment?"

The fact that he recognized her due to Ami's non-stop whining about how brain-dead Sumiko was at the top of her lungs every time they were supposed to work on the assignment in class, he preferred not to mention.

"... Ami?" She looked slightly confused. "Oh, yeah, Ami-senpai! Yeah. She hates you, you know. But I don't." (Okay, she was _definitely _rubbing her breasts against his back.) "I _like_ you, Naruto-kun…"

"Okay, uh, I'll go and get some drinks," Naruto hurriedly withdrew from her, almost making her fall butt-first onto the floor; the fact that they were already at the bar seemed to have escaped him as he quickly fled towards the crowded dancefloor.

_Where _is _everyone?_ he wanted to yell, as he looked around frantically for at least _somebody_ he knew. Sasuke had strangely enough disappeared from the VIP lounge where he had been perched all night, and he hadn't seen any of the girls since they were at the bar… he had lost sight of Neji and Tenten a long time ago, and now Shikamaru, too –

A wave of relief hit him as he recognized one face in the dancing crowd. _Hinata_. She was swaying her hips from side to side quite off-beat, but at least it was _her_, and she seemed to be with-

Halting abruptly, he stared at her in shock and in utter disbelief. Hyuuga Hinata, the heiress of Hyuuga Corp., one of the most influential companies in Asia, as well as the extremely shy, nice girl who always stuttered, was _grinding _with some random guy.

Or rather, _he_ was grinding a half-conscious Hinata who could barely stand straight on wobbly legs, eyelids fluttering and cheeks flushed, one thing was obvious – she was _drunk_.

And the guy was struggling in frustration to feel her up – or rather, feel her _down_ as his hand could not get inside the tight material hugging her breasts.

_What the hell?_ he thought, wondering where the flying pigs were. Or if he'd landed himself into an alternate dimension where Sasuke wasn't emo, Kakashi was as pure as a monk, and Hinata – apparently – did things as dry-hump strangers.

But at least one thing was sure – it didn't seem like something Hinata would do, and it'd most likely not end well if he didn't intervene. Therefore, before Naruto was even aware of what he was doing, he had approached the dancing (or _having sex with clothes on _was more the correct label) couple. "Hey!"

"Whaddya want?" the guy inquired sluggishly; the whites of his eyes were red, and by the distant look in his eyes, it was obvious that he was either stoned or drunk. Or both.

"Get off her," Naruto demanded as he closed the distance further with a frown.

"What, you her _boyfriend_ or something?" the guy half-snorted, half-laughed; his hands didn't cease to try to get into her tight, navy dress, and as Naruto's gaze traveled towards them (_and not her breasts, because he was looking at anything else but her breasts_) he pushed him off her with a disgusted grimace.

The guy swayed to the side, and swiveling around, he found another half-drunk girl who he immediately grinded. Naruto's brow furrowed further, and he felt inclined to pull her away as well – Kiba had labeled it his 'hero complex', as Naruto always felt the urge to go and save the day – but he was distracted when Hinata suddenly seemed to realize the change in partners (and lack of grinding) as she flung her arms around his neck, knocking the air out of him. "NARUTO-KUN!"

Patting her back awkwardly as he tried to breathe (she had quite a surprising strength for somebody who seemed so frail), "Um, hi."

"Neji-onii-san is going to be maaa-_aaad_," she giggled in a singsong voice as she withdrew, poking his nose with her finger repeatedly. "You know why?"

"Er… why?"

She lowered her voice into a whisper. "'Cause I'm _drunk_." She laughed nasally as her tries to catch her breath made her sound like a pig, and then she dramatically put a finger to her lips. "Shhhhhh!"

"Hinata, how much did you dr-"

She pushed the finger to her lips as she wrinkled her forehead, obviously annoyed by Naruto's response as she leaned closer to him. "Shhhhhh!"

"Okay, shhh!" he played along with a distressed grin as he imitated her gesture, causing her to burst into a fit of giggles again. As she was about to fall, he caught hold of her waist and pulled her upwards, guiding her towards the exit of the club. "What the hell is Neji doing? I get that he's trying to apologize to Tenten, but –"

"NARUTO-KUN!" cried Hinata suddenly at an excessive volume as she put her hand to her forehead, leaning her head back with a swishing, dramatic movement as her other hand pressed roughly against his lips.

"_Whuot_?" was all he managed to blurt out with the palm of her hand clamped against his mouth as he struggled to get rid of her grasp.

"I NEED A DR. PHIL!" she wailed, flailing with her arms as she almost karate-chopped his teeth as he tried to speak. "I've all this pent up emo-ness inside of me… you see," Hinata whimpered with large, teary eyes, "I'm afraid… I'm afraid of becoming _Neji-onii-san_."

"… O… okay," was Naruto's well-thought response as he felt slightly frightened of this drunken Hinata – she was reminiscent of a more dramatic, more violent, more _everything_ Ino.

He shuddered.

"You see," she spoke up in a trembling voice, "I've already got the hair, and we look so much alike. Once, when I went out shopping with him, they even asked me if we were _twins_…oh, the _horror_… then maybe, since I'm so like Neji-onii-san, I'll need a genital transplantation so that I can become a _guy_ –"

Naruto looked simply mortified at the topic. "Um –"

"- I MEAN, IT'LL BE YOUR FAULT!" Instantly changing her attitude, she glared at him accusingly as she shook him by his shoulders as though she was trying to shake an unconscious person awake. "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT ANYWAY, NARUTO-KUN!"

Although Naruto had always loved being in the spotlight and the center of all attention, he was sort of glad that they were almost by the exit in the club, and that the few people who passed by – mostly on their way out – were far too absorbed in their own drunkenness to notice the screaming Hinata, whose alabaster orbs were bulging dangerously and who was causing quite the scene.

"M-my fault?" the poor blonde stammered, blinking in confusion.

"YES, BECAUSE YOU MADE NEJI-ONII-SAN EMO. IT WAS BAD ENOUGH THAT SASUKE-SAN WAS THE KING OF ALL THAT IS EMO, BUT YOU MADE NEJI-ONII-SAN JOIN HIM IN EMO PARADISE. Whereas I… I…" Hinata broke out into a violent fit of sobbing. "I NEED A DR. PHIL!"

"Y-yeah, okay…" Looking around frantically for someone, _anyone_, without finding the slightest comfort for his victimized (and now _traumatized_) soul, he fumbled after his cell-phone, only to notice its blackened screen.

_Great timing, _he sarcastically thought as Hinata's speech began once more. "THEREFORE, I MUST LOOK FOR KAKASHI-SAN!"

"Kakashi-sensei?" he repeated, astonished.

"Yes! 'Fore Kakashi-san is the Destroyer of All That Is Evil, Bringer of All That Is Good, and the King of All Pygmy Puffs! He, who hast the Kingdom of Broccoli and Falafel in his possession, shall surely defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!" She pumped her fist into the air determinedly. "Because the Pygmy Puffs shalt eat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named alive with ramen broth and Versace perfume!"

"Voldemort?" Naruto wanted to know. "But… he's got Death Eaters!"

"BUT KAKASHI-SAN WEARS LEATHER PANTS! AND THAT," she breathed dramatically, her eye muscles stretching as she gave him a Look that dared him to prove otherwise, "means that ultimately, _YOU_, Naruto-kun, are my Dr. Phil in leather pants!"

"But I'm not –"

"HUSH, HUSH, YOU STUPID REINDEER! THOU SHALT WEAR LEATHER PANTS, BECAUSE GOD CREATED LEATHER PANTS FOR US WOMEN TO DROOL OVER WHEN MEN WEAR THEM."

Naruto watched, horrified, as she gave him another Look, followed by a meaningful wink. "Al… right…"

"So will you?" She leaned closer as he tried to inch away, to no avail, as her hands clenched his shoulders tightly; her pearly orbs filled to the brim with tears. "Will you be my Dr. Phil, Naruto-kun?"

The blonde blinked at her, slightly dazed, as her breath ghosted his lips. "Err… sure."

"Then, my first confession is…" She took a deep breath, but immediately retaliated as she choked a little and coughed slightly, before she grinned in a manner not too different from the Cheshire Cat in _Alice in Wonderland_. "… I need to pee."

* * *

_I don't know if I should stay  
Or turn around and run_

* * *

Neji had always considered himself a person with rational thinking and who never acted foolishly due to impulses

(_which Naruto and Kiba would've translated to, "being an inhuman robot")_

and therefore never had to condescend to visible irritation or tantrums. If there was anything he wished to speak aloud, he'd do so, without a moment's hesitation – be it an insult or a compliment. And also, he had learned from his father that icy politeness could prove itself to be a quite powerful weapon in verbal battles.

But that was when he actually was _given _a chance to speak at all.

"Ten -," he tried for the umpteenth time the same night, but the bun-haired Chinese evasively escaped

(_he grudgingly had to admit that he was impressed by her speed, but then again, she wasn't a Hyuuga bodyguard for nothing_)

him, _again_, with smooth, dancing movements. A chocolate-haired boy who was doing something that could've been either the robot dance or a shockingly accurate imitation of an elderly man trying to karate-chop invisible, rapid flies, caught her eye as she immediately danced up to him and started grinding against him. Responding eagerly, he circled his arms around her waist and returned the gesture enthusiastically.

Least to say, Neji was on the verge of screaming bloody murder, tearing his hair out and tackling the boy with a fearsome, throaty roar and claw his eyes out.

(_But of course, that was very un-Neji-like behavior, so what he did was instead grit his teeth and send the boy The Glare, but he was either too stupid or too drunk, because he didn't seem to care)_

He approached them again with a brisk stride. "Tenten –"

"Don't disturb me, Neji," she cut across him irritably, and he hid his slight astonishment that she had spoken to him at all – five and a half hours had passed since their arrival, and it was the first time he had heard her voice. "I'm in the middle of something here."

To apparently make her point clearer, she pressed her body up against the boy (who couldn't believe his luck) even more. Panting, the boy spoke up, "We sure are…" He lowered his voice in an attempt to be seductive as he grinned wolfishly, "We could get in the middle of something in my bedroom, too. I don't live far away from here –"

Neji's fist clenched tightly, but before he could even raise it, the boy had fallen bum-first onto the floor, arising on unsteady legs as he stared in obvious disapproval at the girl who had just pushed him (quite hard, too). "Come _on_ –"

"Get lost, you freak," she retorted as she arched one of her hazel eyebrows, surveying him with something a little less mild than outright disgust. Neji couldn't help but smirk.

"Aww, don't be such a spoilsport –"

His hand was nearing Tenten's body (or more specifically, her ass) again, but he wisely stopped when Neji gave him a Look

(_the capital L to be noted)_

that could've encased the Sahara desert in ice and sent Hannibal Lecter running away screaming as a 3-year-old girl.

"Either you disappear out of my sight _instantly_," he said with a calm that felt like that before a storm – and not a little one, either; "or I shall make you regret it for the rest of your life when you're stuck in a wheelchair."

A scowl appeared on the boy's face, but he still averted his gaze away from the menacing Hyuuga. "Okay, whatever," he muttered sourly as he withdrew. "_Freak_."

He glared calmly at his retreating back until it was out of sight, and then he turned back to Tenten, grasping her arm before she could walk off again. Shaking it off impatiently, he couldn't help but remark dryly, "You're being utterly ridiculous, Tenten."

Tenten shot him a glare that could've rivaled his own – except that instead of _cold_, it was more _fiery_

(_if his glare could've made the Sahara desert freeze up, then hers could've scorched – not _melted, _but _burned down_ – both the North Pole and the South Pole in the matter of seconds)_

as she frantically looked around, and grabbing hold of another random guy who was dancing by himself, she tried him as a new (quite willing) grinding victim.

Furrowing his brow as his annoyance became visible, Neji tore them apart with more force than needed. "Dammit, Tenten, I'm talking to you!"

This time around, the guy merely arched an eyebrow and backed off, for which Tenten awarded Neji another Glare. "Why the hell should I listen to anything you've to say?" she demanded hotly.

"Because I _apologized_ for my earlier behavior?" he stated as though he saw her as an idiot.

Putting her hand onto her chest, she looked heavenwards in mock drama. "Wow, Neji, your _apology for your earlier behavior_ really touched my heart. It was _so _emotional." The glare that resurfaced in her eyes exceeded the previous one by far; if looks could kill, Neji would've instantly been buried six feet underground as nothing but dust. "Haven't you ever seen the Taiwanese version of Meteor Garden, Neji? 'If sorry could change anything, then we wouldn't have the police'!"

His gaze shifted from '_are-you-an-idiot_' to a mere '_you're-definitely-psycho_' combined with, quite mildly put, '_what the fuck_'?

"You know what? Just forget it," she exhaled sharply as she spun on her heel in a fresh attempt of leaving, but once again, his digits closed around her wrist in the matter of seconds.

"What do you want me to do? Go down on one knee and sing an apology for you?" he asked, voice dripping of sarcasm, as she swiveled about to face him again.

"No, that's just stupid. I mean, what the hell, you're not Zac Efron and this isn't _Hairspray_. Or _High School Musical_." Her face suddenly lit up as a devilish sparkle glimmered in her hazel orbs. "Hey, that _is_ a good idea."

"… You want me to _sing _that I'm sorry?" he restated in mere disbelief.

"No, I want you to sing Westlife's 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry'. And ooh, ooh! Then I can sing, _it's too late, to apologize… IT'S TOO LATE!_" Her eyes glittered with excitement.

"I sincerely hope that you're not being fully serious," rasped Neji in a tone that clearly was waiting for her to prove such.

"Oh, but I _am _fully serious," Tenten replied with a voice that would've made all villains tremble in fear.

"I don't even know the song," he said in a try to escape his (_horrible, humiliating, fatal, cruel, and all possible synonyms in existence)_ fate.

"How about Akon's '_Lonely_'?" she suggested innocently.

If looks could have been put into words (which would've been utterly meaningless because then you might as well have said it out loud, but still), Neji's would've screeched, "_HELL TO THE NAW BIATCH, OVER MY DEAD BODY._"

With at least a dozen exclamation marks or so. And a bitch-slap, just for good measure.

Throwing up her hands in vexed defeat, she sighed, "Fine, if your fucking _pride_ is more important to you than our friendship…"

To her utter astonishment, he slowly sank down onto one knee with a grimace that made him look as though somebody had just announced that he'd be beheaded on MTV wearing nothing but pink Barbie boxers. She also noticed, to her great glee, that for some strange reason, a part of Neji's precious hair had curled itself on one side.

(_Of course, she'd like to believe it was due to her mastermind scheme, but it was most likely due to the extreme heat and dampness in the club)_

"_Lonely_," he mumbled through gritted teeth as a few dancers nearby stopped to stare at the ongoing scene, "_I am so lonely. I've nobody –_"

"Whaaaat?" Tenten put a hand next to her ear, unable to hide her playful grin as she added in a singsong voice, "I can't hear a word!"

She wondered if his teeth would crack if he kept on gritting them like that. "_LONELY_," he bellowed, his pale cheeks adapting a lovely color of baby pink. "_LONELY. I AM SO LONELY. I HAVE NOBODY. TO CALL MY OOOOOOOOOOWN…_"

A tiny crowd had gathered around them as they laughed audibly as he came to an abrupt halt, refusing to meet anybody else's eye as he instead chose to pierce furiously into hers. "Can I get up now?"

Unable to reply due to the fact that she had doubled over with laughter as tears spilled from her eyes, she tried to take a mental photograph of him right then and there – bent on one knee as though he was about to propose, wearing the same grimace he had done as a child when she had forced him to play tea party with her

(_under the threat that she would otherwise tell everybody about the fact that he spent more time on his hair than he did on anything else, including martial arts)_

cheeks tinted with a flush that was visible even as the disco lights above blared, turning his pale face in a variety of mixed colors, like fantastically blue or banana yellow, and she…

… was roaring with laughter.

Gasping for her breath as she wiped away the mascara trail her tears had left, she managed to choke, "Say, 'Tenten, you're the Queen of All That Is Good, And The Girl That Michael Jackson Always Sings About In His Songs. I'm the Undercover Ninja Who Screws Up Everything. And, oh, oh!" Having seemingly recovered, she grinned widely in glee as the crowd continued to laugh, like the faceless laughter one heard in comedy shows. "'I'm terribly sorry, but that's the way you become when you watch Sailor Moon day and night. My secret wish is actually to become Sailor Mars, because of her long hair.'"

If it had been a cartoon, fume would've poured out from every single cell of Neji's body in the form of venomous, purple smoke. "_Tenten _–"

"Okay, I get it. If your _pride _means too much for you –"

"_Tenten. You're the queen of all that is good, and the girl that Michael Jackson always sings about in his songs. I'm the undercover ninja who screws up everything. And oh, _oh!" he spoke up sarcastically, his eyes shooting poison-dripping daggers at her as he refused to look at the audience who was, akin to Tenten, barely able to stand properly due to their laughter (and drunken state),_ "I'm terribly sorry, but that's the way you become when you watch Sailor Moon day and night –_"

Tenten watched as the curl rose higher and higher with every word, as though an invisible person was pulling it, and unable to take anymore, she cried; "Oh my God! Stop! You're killing me!"

This time, he didn't wait for her approval as he hurriedly arose, still quite pointedly not meeting the eyes of the onlookers. "Are you done yet?" he snapped irritably, his pink deepening to a more dashing crimson.

"Oh my God! You didn't even have to say 'and oh, oh!' That just…" The rest of her speech was drowned in an explosive fit of, in lack of better words; '_PA-hahahahahahaha_ –'

Spinning around speedily, he growled, "I'm off."

She felt as though she was reliving a déjà-vu as she put her hand on his shoulder, effectively stopping him from leaving, as she tried to ignore the fact that her tears were flowing freely down on her cheeks, messing up her makeup to a point beyond recognition.

_But it's worth it, _she decided with an inward grin as she gasped, "No, wait. I forgive you."

Slowly turning around again, he smirked – probably the nearest thing he could come to a smile, she mused – as he questioned, "You do?"

"Yeah, I do." She returned the motion with a broad grin. And then, "Oh, _God_, I can't believe you actually just _did_ that…"

The scowl returned faster to his face than Naruto when he saw (or _sensed_, as the blonde kept insisting) ramen. "Shut up."

"And your hair is looking really funny," she commented and shrieked out of laughter again as his hands anxiously flew up to aforementioned hair.

When the laughter had finally receded, the crowd had started to ignore them again and Tenten had already prevented Neji from leaving a total of three times, she finally managed to say, "God, I can't wait to tell Hinata. Where is she, by the way?"

"Well, Hinata-sama is supposed to be…" His sentence trailed off as his face expression darkened, as the two (_failed_) bodyguards surveyed their surroundings without finding even one familiar face, and even less the particular one they were looking for.

And in a moment that'd rewrite History and would be probably, someday, be nominated as one of the Most Unbelievable Moments in Human Memory, the flaky Tenten known for her almost masculine way of speech as well as her random metaphors and remarks, and the ever-so-perfectionist Hyuuga Neji whose dignity only allowed him to use a vocabulary that boasted of academic skill, spoke their thoughts with one mutual word, in perfect synchronization:

"_Fuck_."

_

* * *

_

How am I supposed to feel  
About the things I've done

* * *

"I love you."

Sasuke froze solid, as his grasp of her two legs slackened, causing her to cling further to his neck, her warm breath caressing his skin as she spoke once more, giggling drunkenly;

"Dun' knooow why it was so hard, really. I love you. I _looove_ you. _Ajlubjoo_!"

Unable to digest her words and still rigid with shock, Sasuke made no effort to reply. This, however, proved not to be a problem to the pinkette, as she continued her monologue. "It's all Itachi's fault I couldn't say it beeefouuurrr. Damn Itache. Or Itachoo. PIKACHU!"

She slid off his back as she almost fell headfirst onto the pavement, but steadied her legs the last minute as she started hopping around on all fours like a rather misshaped imitation of a rabbit, bellowing "PIKACHU! PIKACHU! PIKACHU!" at the top of her lungs, before collapsing right into a bush.

"Youuuu," she drawled uncertainly as she waggled slowly towards the shell-shocked Uchiha prodigy, a drowsy smile on her lips, "are an idiiiooot. Idiot for leaving me in Konoha while going to Sound while fucking Sound bitches. 'Caaaauuuseee…"

She took a deep breath, before breaking out into a screeching chorus of, "_You just wanna fuck bad bitches! All them nights you never had bitches… now all I'm up in that ass BIIIT –_"

Her apple-green eyes bulged as she opened her mouth, making a gagging sound; amazed, she kept her mouth open as she realized she was not puking, and giggled as enthusiastically as an ADHD patient would after having had enormous amounts of ecstasy; the giggles erupted into louder and louder laughter, until she bellowed at the top of her lungs… when a sparkling droplet suddenly escaped her left eye.

"How couuuuld youuu, Sasuke-kuuuun," she sobbed as she poked the poor ever-so-astounded boy on his chest roughly, "how could you just leave me like that? You owe me, you know that? You owe me and all of our beautiful, unborn, black-haired children with green eyes! What am I gonna tell 'em when they ask me why I won't watch _Flintstones_? I can't just say that 'your daddy left me for Michael Jackson's kid with a snake born out of wedlock'…"

Tears streamed down her cheeks like waterfalls as she bawled, "_Every _fucking Friday, I had to sit with stupid Naruto watching his stupid _Flintstones_ with his stupid miso ramen, and YOU KNOW WHAT? I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMOOOORE! YOU GOTTA COME BACK FROM SOUND! 'Cause… that dinosaur is the _wrong shade of pink_," she emphasized in a hissing voice as her finger prodded his well-trained chest with each word;

"And… and… WHAT AM I GONNA SAY TO 'EM, HUH? LITTLE SASUKE JUNIOR AND LITTLE SAKURA JUNIOR? AND SASUKE JUNIOR JUNIOR? 'CAUSE THEY CAN'T WATCH _FLINTSTONES_ ANYMOOORE! AND… AND… WHAT IF SASUKE JUNIOR JUNIOR DYES HIS HAIR THE SAME PINK AS THAT STUPID DINOSAUR? THAT'D BE SO WRONG! HIS HAIR IS BEAUTIFULLY PINK, SASUKE-KUN, BEAAAU –"

And then she graciously puked on his feet.

_

* * *

_

And even though you're next to me, I still feel so alone  
I just can't give you anything to call your own

* * *

The rain was falling again.

Sasuke had never liked rain much. Contrary to popular belief, although he was a "broody" person, and he disliked sunshine – it lured too many people out on the streets, and too many fangirls to stalk him – but rain prevented him from taking his daily walks.

And as of right now, he _detested_ the rain that was pouring outside like somebody had just turned on a gigantic shower, the raindrops smattering against the windows loudly, as though to call for everybody's attention.

And because of the rain, he was now stuck in _her_ apartment.

It was the same as always – the same furniture, the same emptiness, the same hanging silence in the air as that after somebody has died. As a child, they had seldom played in Sakura's house during daytime, but they still knew it well. They had kept her company countless nights when she had felt alone, or simply bored

(_but mostly the previous_)

and made the lifeless atmosphere come to life, even if it was only temporary.

But what had once been precious memories now made him feel quite uncomfortable, like there was an ache in a wound that he had been sure was closed.

"Sasuke…"

He stiffened as he looked across his shoulder; the pinkette was still sleeping soundly in her bed behind him, and he exhaled sharply as he realized such.

_I love you, _her voice resounded in his mind as an electric current surged through him at the reminder.

Those three words. Those _stupid_ three words he had waited five years to hear, those _idiotic_ three words that he had completely banished from his mind the following three and a half years, and those _goddamned_ three words that now made him feel like…

He wasn't even sure what it was that he was feeling. It was like there was an electric current – but not strong enough to pain him – going through his body, but at the same time there was an ache, _somewhere_, for a past he couldn't revive – there was _angst_ and _regret_ and _sorrow_ and _anger_, but then there was something akin to…

_Hope_?

Sasuke shook his head, irritated, as though to shake off the thought, as he swiftly marched out of the room in an attempt to relieve the frustration he was feeling. He was being _ridiculous_. No matter how he looked at it, it was impossible for her to _love_ him now. Maybe back then it could've been impossible, when they had been so close – when it seemed like the world could've fallen down and they would still be okay –

But now? After everything they had said and done to each other? Or more specifically, after everything _he_ had said and _she_ had done?

_Get a grip, _a voice that sounded like his father's berated him with a bark in his thoughts, _focus on something else. You will find no answers like that._

He scanned the room, frown deepening, in search of anything to occupy his mind. It was, naturally, impossible for him to sleep _now_, not that he had been planning it either way. He couldn't turn on the TV, as that would wake her up, so therefore, he strode over to the bookshelf in search of something to read.

Title after title registered briefly in his mind, but none that woke interest – books about the cardiovascular system nor_ Bridget Jones' Diary_ seemed like anything Sasuke would read willingly, and with a displeased sigh, he instead dug in his pocket in search of his mp3-player.

The jet-black iPod nano seemed to illuminate the darkened living room as he flopped down unto the jade green couch, glaring at the TV screen as though blaming it for being the source of his inner tumult. The sound of the fan blades spinning above him, and Sakura's (loud) breathing was drowned in a guitar solo the moment he hit play.

_Eyes are feeling heavy, but they never seem to close_, Yellowcard was singing into his ears. _The fan blades on the ceiling spin, but the air is never cold –_

He almost wanted to laugh at the irony. It was as though Ryan Key was singing _about _him.

Instead, he continued to search the room with his gaze, in lack of anything else to do. A crumpled piece of paper lay before him on the wooden coffee table – hadn't Sakura said anything about her father crafting it himself before her birth? – with a slightly smudgy text, as though somebody had shed tears whilst reading or writing it.

_Sakura,_ it read with a perfectly neat handwriting;

_We're off to Tokyo this weekend. We'll probably be back by next. We're sorry that we'll be late again, but we trust you to take care of yourself and the house. There's food in the fridge, and if you run out of food, we've left you money for grocery shopping._

_-- Mom & Dad_

Sasuke remembered clearly that when they had been younger, Sakura's parents had been away almost 90 percent of the year due to their constant business traveling; it probably hadn't receded as of now, either. But what was beyond his comprehension was why the text was so smudged – had she cried while reading it? But of what reason?

He couldn't remember Naruto saying anything about her parents' behavior as of the recent years. Perhaps they had become more distant, more detached – he wouldn't know. Her name alone had become taboo ever since _that_ time.

It struck him how little he knew about her now, having not wanted to speak to her for almost four years. Was she still the same as she used to be? Did she still eat muesli with honey and yoghurt faithfully every morning because she loved non-Japanese breakfast dishes? Did she still spend hours in front of the mirror trying to curl her hair for certain events, just to have it turn into a weird-looking frizz?

Did she still think he was flawless? What did she think of him now?

_I couldn't bear to hurt you, but it's all so different now,_ Yellowcard chose to sing right then, as though to answer his thoughts. _Things that I was sure of, they have filled me up with doubt…_

Putting away the note, Sasuke arose again and entered Sakura's room. At least he could use her computer for the time being – it'd at least keep him busier than contemplating things that were better left _unthought_, if that was even a word.

However, something stopped him. Something he hadn't noticed when he had carried the unconscious pinkette to her bed an hour prior to now.

Her entire wall was _covered_ with photos.

Black-and-white ones; colored ones; big ones; small ones – all kinds and all kinds of people in it.

There was the photo he recognized so well from his childhood – a black-and-white picture of Sakura's parents, smiling at the camera with an infant Sakura in their arms

(_that's my dad and mom, she had explained countless times, and staring longingly at the photo as though she wished them to appear if she stared long enough)_

and then there was another one, of a 3-year-old Sakura playing at the beach, looking unnaturally happy with the broadest grin on her face with her father standing next to her.

The following photos, from when Sakura was 4 years and onward, had none of her parents in them. She was standing next to Ino in most pictures; posing with a bunch of flowers in their hair and hands; trying to pull Ino's horrified father to join them in playing dress-up, fully armed with a makeup kit and an unbelievable amount of brushes and combs; smiling with their shoulder-length, flowing hair in identical hairstyles in front of a cake on which it was scrawled, "_Happy Birthday, Ino!_"…

And then, with a flinch, Sasuke stared at his own, sullen-faced 8-year-old self standing next to _her_, smiling even bigger and happier than in any of the photos he had seen so far, with a guitar in front of them, and his mother's stolen (or _borrowed,_ as Sakura had insisted later in an attempt to defend Sasuke for something he hadn't done) high-heels in her hands.

"_I know, you can be a rockstar, and I can be a model!"_

The remaining photos all had either him or Ino in them; a 10-year-old Sakura joining Naruto's father in the impossible task of trying to make Ino and Naruto stop fighting; an 11-year-old Sakura pulling on his sleeve as he reluctantly joined her in going into a women's clothing store; a 12-year-old Sakura grinning toothily at the camera, showing her braces as he and Naruto glared at each other…

The amount of photos had almost come to its end; a photo that apparently had been taken 3 years ago – prior to his returning to Konoha – showed her standing next to Naruto with a meek, barely existent – but still there –smile as he made quite an effort to grin as widely as possible, looking very much like the Cheshire Cat from Alice's Wonderland

(_not that Sasuke made such a childish comparison)_

as he did so.

He was definitely being ridiculous.

(_about her "confession" and such, if one could even call it that)_

Sakura was, of course, not in love with him. It had only been the immeasurable amount of drinks she had taken that was talking. What had even been thinking? She had been spouting utter nonsense from the moment she had clung to him at the balcony, of course she wasn't speaking seriously _then_.

And either way, she was in love with Naruto now.

They were dating. And furthermore, he was the only one who could make her smile now.

(_"Heey, Sakura-chan! Why do you become so happy when Sasuke-teme gives you a birthday present, but not so happy when I do?!")_

Besides, she had spoken in past tense. Or, well, she had _talked_ as though she had _reverted_ back to their past; telling him to come back from Sound, and so on.

But that, too, he decided abruptly, was ridiculous.

(_Because back then, before she had dated Naruto –)_

Sasuke stared at the latest photo on her wall – the infamous picture of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and their entourage, the one posted everywhere – on people's lockers, on the net, on the notice boards in school – consisting of her, Ino and Hinata; his arm encircled around Ino's waist, Naruto's hand intertwined with hers, Hinata between Kiba and Neji; and he realized that the only two that were left unsmiling on the photo –

(-_ it had been _him.)

- was _her_ and _him_.

(_"A guy can't be _pretty, _Sakura." Irritation._

_Grin. "Aww, don't be jealous, Sasuke-kun – when you grow up, you'll be almost as pretty as Ita – Sasuke-kun, where're you going?!")_

Yes, he decided as Yellowcard's song came to an end, leaving him to listen to Sakura's breathing until the next song began, it was all utterly ridiculous.

_

* * *

_

And I can feel you breathing  
And it's keeping me awake

* * *

She was about to get mauled by a gigantic rabbit.

It wasn't even a normal rabbit. It was _yellow_. As in bright, screaming, fiery yellow – the sort of flashy yellow that was the color of Ino's favorite nail polish in the summer – with piercing, accusing sapphire eyes.

"_How _could _you!" _it bellowed at the top of its lungs. "_How _could _you do this to me?_"

"_Do what_?" Ino yelled back, as she dodged a fatal blow that punched a hole the size of The Academy in the wall behind her. "_I haven't done anything!_"

"_You ruined everything_!Everything!" screeched the rabbit, stomping in frustration as Ino backed, paralyzed with fear as her body moved on its own, "_You fucking _traitor!"

The voice echoed, as though they had been on mountains; and suddenly Ino could feel herself falling – the ground beneath her was caving – and she screamed, but to no avail; she realized that she'd keep falling forever in this endless void, never-ending depth.

"_Blame yourself, Yamanaka_," Neji said as he floated in mid-air, perfectly balanced, as Ino kept falling, kept screaming – "_you brought it on yourself._"

"_Brought what on myself? Help me, Neji! HELP!_"

"_This loneliness._" His voice felt like it was tearing her apart. Even though his orbs were milky white, almost iris-less due to its light color, it seemed impossibly even more penetrating than the rabbit's. "_You can feel it, don't you? Eating at you – just like when your parents almost had a divorce –_"

"_SHUT UP_!" she shrieked, but her lungs failed her; it came out like a cracked, dry sound, and with a disapproving snort, Neji disappeared, and was replaced by Sakura, who flickered, as though she was a hologram, not a real person; relief flowed through her. "_Sakura! Sakura, please help me… I… I'm falling…_"

"_Why should I help you?_" Her eyes were lifeless, apathetic – an expression that scared her more than she could understand; had she ever seen so… so _dead_ before? "_You killed me, don't you know?_"

"_Killed you?_" she demanded, bewildered. "_I haven't _killed _you!_"

And then, Sakura clawed inside of her chest, tearing it open, and she couldn't even close her eyes; all she could do was stare, wide-eyed, as she tore out her heart, a beating, bleeding organ in her hand that was spurting blood from its broken veins, and then she squeezed it.

"_STOP IT!_" screamed Ino, but she continued to squeeze, until no more blood came… and then, as Sakura's eyelids fluttered to a close, she fell into a broken heap. "_Sakura! SAKURA_!"

She screamed. And screamed. It felt like it'd never stop – like _she_'d never stop. Never stop falling, never stop screaming… never being able to get that picture out of her mind…

Until she finally found something. _Gravity_. Her fingers were grasping the edge of a cliff tightly, and she could almost see her knuckles whiten – although she could barely see anything else clearly, neither the sky nor what was below her – and all she knew was that she needed to keep clinging, to never let go, because if she did –

She didn't even want to think about what'd happen.

And suddenly, somebody showed itself. Or rather, _himself_.

"_Sasuke-kun_!" she exclaimed, once again relieved, on the verge of tears. "_God…. Sasuke-kun… help me, I – I'm going to fall, please…_"

No answer. His back was turned towards her.

"_Sasuke-kun_." She was getting desperate; her grip was starting to slacken, against her will, and despair was clawing in her entire body like a maddened cat; in her chest, in her fingers, in her head, even in her throat, making her voice crack when she spoke up again. "_Please… help me…_"

Then, slowly, torturously, painfully, _agonizingly _slowly, he swiveled around.

And completely mortified, she realized that he had no face. It was him, without a doubt – that raven hair, that pale skin, those clothes, even the _Konoha's Soccer Club_ t-shirt she had borrowed earlier, but the place where his beautiful, almost angelic face features should be situated, had been replaced by skin.

Nothing but perfectly ivory, almost _shiny_ skin – like that of a doll – as he said blankly, "_Who are you?_"

And then her fingers slipped, and she fell again – this time faster than before, the gravity pulling her towards the end with such force that she knew that the moment she'd hit the ground, she'd shatter to pieces and experience unbelievable pain –

But what scared her the most wasn't even the fact that she'd die.

What scared her the most was that she was afraid to live.

And then, with a start, she realized that her back had connected with the soft material of a bed. Her entire body was aching, especially her feet – she could tell she had countless blisters – and her head, which seemed like it had been cut in half; her throat was parched, and she was breathing through her mouth, gasping for air which hurt her sore throat.

Irritated, she realized that she couldn't open her eyes.

It wasn't like Ino didn't _want_ to. After the nightmare – and she thanked God it was only a nightmare – she didn't want to go back to sleep again. But her eyelids seemed to have glued themselves to each other.

Frankly recalling having been at a club last night, she instantly knew who her company was – the one who she could hear breathing

(_because Ino did indeed have pretty good hearing, even if she was such a loudmouth herself_)

some distance away, and who seemed to watch TV at a low volume. She didn't pay heed to what program it was.

"Urgghh… ice," she groaned hoarsely. "Bring me ice."

There was a tiny pause. Then, she could hear the sound of somebody getting up from the floor; footsteps; and then, after a while, something hard, cold and wet pressed into the palm of her left hand.

She brought it to her left eye slowly, and winced at the pain of the cold – but it was needed for the excessive amount of makeup to unglue itself from each other – and mumbled, "Thanks, Sakura."

"… I'm not Sakura," a baritone voice that sounded familiar – but who definitely wasn't _Sasuke_ – replied, and startled, she flipped one eyelid open as she proceeded to unglue the rest, sitting up swiftly on the bed.

The scene before her was unclear, as though she was seeing through a fog – the room was half-lit, and a dark figure was standing next to the bed, somebody who, just like the person had said, wasn't Sakura. "Wh-who are you? Why are you in my –" Realizing that the feel of the sheets and the entire room didn't look like her own, she yelled; "OH MY _GOD_ --!! RAAAAAPIIIISST! THERE'S A RAAAAAAAAAAAPIIIIIIST IN HEREEEE –"

An annoyed sigh cut her off. "Relax, Ino, it's just me."

Having successfully unglued her other eyelid, she blinked a couple of times groggily. "Shikamaru?"

"No," he retorted sarcastically, "Johnny Depp."

"_Really_? You wouldn't mind signing my bra, would you?"

"…"

"I was just kidding, you know," she threw back with a roll of her eyes that pained them slightly. Which, in turn, made her head feel as though she had just been electrocuted.

"I'm glad to hear that." Pausing, he asked; "Are you feeling better?"

"I think my head's going to explode with a loud "KA-BOOM!", and then all of my inner organs will be spraying all over you, and you'll swim in a sea of my blood pretty soon." Imitating his earlier sarcasm, she added, "But other than that, I'm fine."

"That's how it gets when you've had at least 20 tequila shots and half a bottle vodka. Or something like that. Aspirin?"

"Would be very much appreciated, thanks," she murmured as he silently left the room, his footsteps the only thing breaking the silence as her eyes scanned the room swiftly. It was nothing special – brown wallpaper, wooden floor, two windows with a view that had been dimmed by the increasing amount of raindrops smattering against it. A bed, a TV, a desk, a chair, a shelf and a wardrobe – a photo of him and Chouji, above the bed, and another one of him, Chouji, Kiba and Naruto

(_do they know each other? she inwardly wondered, surprised_)

as grinning 11-year-olds. _But none of him and Temari_, it dawned upon her as she hid a triumphant smirk whilst accepting and swallowing the Aspirin he had offered her along with a glass of (_perfect, much wanted, beloved_) icy cold water.

"So…," she drawled, trying to prolong the word to break the silence that had fallen, "how did I wind up here, again?"

"You got drunk. And fainted," he added with a casual shrug as though his hobby was bringing home unconscious blondes who had just one cocktail too many. "So I brought you here."

"Oh. Right." Ino reverted back to being uncharacteristically quiet, battling her memory in search of anything embarrassing she could've done when she was being drunk. Several scenarios flashed through her mind – stripping, pouring out her secrets, perhaps even _kissing _him – when she suddenly noticed something.

Or rather, the _lack_ of something. The lack of clothes tightly clinging to her body. Looking down in horror, she realized that her clothing had been changed to a baggy, white t-shirt and a pair of boxers, and she shrieked, "Those aren't my clothes!"

"I know," he stated simply, and Ino could feel her eye muscles stretch further.

"We… we didn't -," she choked, but he swiftly interrupted her with an assuring; "Don't worry, we didn't do anything."

She relaxed briefly, but then scrunched up her face as she contemplated why he'd change her clothes. "But, then – why – how – YOU PERVERT!"

She shot him her most intimidating glare, but instead of obediently recoiling in fear (and perhaps even throw in a girlish scream), Shikamaru merely raised an arched eyebrow towards his forehead. "You threw up everywhere, even after you were unconscious. You were basically stinking and almost choking on your own vomit by the time I got you here. I just changed your clothes, that's all."

"_That's all_?" she sputtered as she could feel her cheeks turn magenta, "I wanted my _boyfriend_ to be the first guy to ever see me naked, not _you_ – while I was _choking on my own vomit, _nonetheless!"

At this remark, both of his eyebrows traveled further up in an expression of astonishment. "I'm the first guy to see you naked?"

His simple statement couldn't have hurt more than if he had stabbed her in the chest with a knife. Ino was aware that a lot of people probably thought of her as a slut, but seldom people who she had actually thought were _close _to her – not that she _was_ close with him anyway, she tried to mentally remedy, it wasn't like he was anybody important…

"What, you think I've slept around?" she challenged him, and was irritated that the fact that she felt wounded at his remark showed through. "I'm not a slut, you know! I know that I wear short skirts and revealing tops and stuff, but I don't – I don't _sleep _around, like Ami! I –"

"That's not what I meant," Shikamaru cut her off, and instant relief flooded through her, making her feel at ease. "But you and Sasuke have been going out for more than a year, and I thought you guys had already… well, had sex."

He was still seemingly quite surprised by this without even quite reacting to the topic itself, but Ino's face burned a brighter red, especially at the reminder that Sasuke seemed to be the only guy whatsoever who couldn't seem less attracted by her, what with the fact that he never took the initiative to even kiss her; sex was completely out of the question.

"Well, we want to wait until it feels right," she retorted defensively, and flicked her hair with as much nonchalance as she could muster.

_But wait, _she suddenly realized with a pang of glee, _isn't it a good thing that he isn't trying to get into my pants? He's not like the others._

"And Sasuke wants to take it slow, too," she added quickly with a visible note of pride in her tone, "he's not with me to get into my pants, you know."

"… Good for you," was all Shikamaru had to supply for an answer, making her feel slightly annoyed –her other peers (with the exception of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and Sakura, Hinata and Tenten, of course) would've squealed by now and fawned over the romantic factor of it all. Not that she had been waiting for the same girly reaction from Shikamaru, but at least he didn't have to sound so… _monotonous._

But perhaps, it dawned upon her, it was because he was already used to it all.

Not _talking_ about sex, maybe – but _having_ it. That could be why he seemed so unfazed by the topic, and if he had thought she and Sasuke had had it… but she didn't know how long he and Temari had been going out…

Unable to hide the sulk that flashed across her face, she wondered, "Have you?"

"Have I what?"

"Lost your virginity?" she pressed on, irritated.

At this, he flushed slightly – it wasn't quite visible in the half-dark, but there was definitely a tint of _something _on his cheeks as he hurriedly diverted his gaze from her demanding eyes. "That's none of your business."

"I just told you I haven't lost mine." She crossed her arms stubbornly as her frown deepened. "You should at least tell me if you've lost yours."

He made no attempt to answer, and strangely enough, that made it feel like her heart had just plummeted into the pit of her stomach. "… Well?"

"Technically," he replied, a little too fast for his usual careless manner, "I don't owe you anything, since I saved you. Which, by the way, you haven't even thanked me for yet."

"_Thank you_," she enunciated with exaggerated clarity through clenched teeth, not bothering to stifle her impatience. "Now, have you lost it or not?"

"… I haven't," Shikamaru finally responded, and she couldn't help but feel that wonderful, warm relief take over every cell of her body again – as though she could finally relax after a long day with the cheerleaders. "Does it matter?"

Ino couldn't suppress the smile that was spreading widely from cheek to cheek. "No."

He still refused to meet her gaze, and she stifled the urge to giggle at his obvious embarrassment. "I'll go and get breakfast."

"Yeah." The smile fading slightly, she asked in panic; "Wait, your family isn't home, are they?"

"My parents are off on a cruise for a year. They won't be home for another six months."

She let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, her anxiety diminishing. "Great. So, um… can I take a shower?"

"Go ahead."

Waiting for his instructions, she stared at him questioningly until he gestured at a door to her left. Rising it up and almost stumbling across a shougi board on the floor in the process, the palm of her hand closed around the welcomingly cool door handle, and pressing it down, she revealed a bathroom strangely neat for a boy's room.

Ino swiveled about to ask a question, but as though he could read her mind, he answered; "Your clothes are already in there. I washed them, so don't blame me if they shrunk or whatever, but I think they should be fine. They should be dry by now."

She smiled thankfully at him, and just as she was about to close the door and he was about to exit, he seemed to have remembered something as he spoke up again. "And oh, Ino?"

"Yeah, what?"

Digging in his pocket, he pulled out the snoring pineapple head keyring along with a crumpled package on which she could see the carelessly scribbled words, '_To Shikamaru_', and for a moment, it felt as though her heart was beating frantically.

Why it was doing so was probably because of the fact that she was dizzy, and her body was abnormal in general, she decided.

"Thanks for the gift."

He smiled – or rather, _smirked_ – and Ino felt her own lips tugging upwards to match his. "You're welcome."

_

* * *

_

Can you feel it beating?

* * *

Hinata was scared.

No, she was more than that.

She was freaking _I'm-going-to-pee-my-pants_, 3-year-old-scared-of-the-monster-in-the-closet _scared_.

The thing was, that even though Hinata had grown up in a family renowned for martial arts, she had never practiced it. Her fragile health and the fact that she had _two _ridiculously skilled bodyguards (even though one had been absent for about two years in a foreign country) had prevented her from "wasting her time" on such antics.

But now, as her alabaster eyes snapped from right to left in this secluded, dark (and _unbelievably_ messy) room that stank of old ramen, she desperately wished she had at least learned how to successfully kick somebody in the crotch.

(_Not that one needed instructions for such, but Hinata felt safer like that)_

Feeling fear trickle upwards from her spine to her neck in the form of a shudder, she could hear footsteps come closer.

She prepared herself in what she hoped was a fighting stance (as much as one could look like a fighter sitting up in a bed, anyway) and when she was completely sure that her offender was within her range, she focused all of her strength and punched him in the nose.

Or, to be more precise, she punched a certain blue-eyed blonde in the nose.

"Ow!" came Naruto's voice as he turned the ceiling lamp on as he rubbed his now extremely red nose, "What're you doing, Hinata?"

"N-N-N-Naruto-kun?!" she burst out, surprised beyond her imagination.

"Y-yeah, it's me," he whimpered as he continued to massage his damaged nose, but only succeeded in making it resemble a bright crimson ball, "I brought you here yesterday night."

"B-brought… b-b-b-brought m-me h-h-here?!" Although she felt a thrill of excitement, panic overtook most of her senses – what exactly had _happened_ last night? All she could remember was joining Ino at the bar for drinks, and then…

Naruto must've noticed her paling visibly, because he hurriedly convinced her – with a face as flushed as his nose – "N-_no_! It wasn't like that! I mean… you got drunk, and… well…"

"S-so… n-n-nothing h-happened?" she asked carefully, and couldn't help but feel some slight disappointment.

"Well… I can't say _nothing_…" Blood rushed to her cheeks as she watched him with wide eyes; his face expression turned serious. "The thing is… last night…" He gulped. "You told me _everything_ about yourself, Hinata."

Whatever she had been expecting, it hadn't been _that. _"W-what?" she stuttered in an octave too shrill for her to seem composed. Not that she was the slightest composed anyway, but she'd have liked to given him that impression – that it was completely normal for her to be abducted by random, good-looking strangers (not that he was only that for her) after having gotten too drunk at a club.

"I never knew you were going through so much…" At this, guilt was added to his stony expression, and her heart was beating so fast she was convinced it was merely a _flutter_ – like a hummingbird's wings. "I mean, I knew Hiashi was a total _asshole_, but… what he's doing to you…"

He seemed to struggle with his words, but raw anger flashed across his sapphire eyes, making them seem uncharacteristically aggravated. "And you know, I know that Neji is a human robot like Sasuke-teme, but even _Sasuke-teme_ would've said something. But for him to not to stick up for you when Hiashi says stuff like that…"

Hinata couldn't believe it. She could hardly believe it. It felt as real and possible as a dream, and any moment now, she was waiting for the Branch maids to tell her to wake up and prepare herself for school.

She must've told him everything. Literally _everything_.

And yet, here he stood, not even disgusted by it all. Instead, he was _angry_.

For _her_ sake.

She didn't know if she wanted to laugh, or cry out of mere joy.

"And then there's that…" A slight grin crept onto his face. "… your big _love_…"

Hinata was more than just stunned by now. The world could've spun out of its solar system, the sun could've exploded and caused the sky to fall down outside of the window, and all of the inhabitants of the Earth could've turned to zombies, and she wouldn't have noticed.

And if her thoughts as of this moment could've been expressed, even if they were barely coherent, they'd have been something like, _ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod__**OHMYGOD**_–

"I… I know that it's not any of my business." Slight nervousness. "But it somehow feels like I should help you. I mean, you could refuse, of course, it's really none of my business and I know I'm just meddling and all, but…"

_ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod –_

"… you were talking, you know, and I couldn't just… well, I don't know, you told me _all_ of it, like how you've been in love with him since you were eight, and always looked up to him, and _everything_, and I… well, I'm sorry, but you just kept on talking…"

_ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod_ –

"… so, you know, if… if you don't have anything against it, like, if you want me to help you… I'm going to protect you from your evil dad and Neji from now on," he announced, slightly proud but fiercely determined, "and I'm going to help you to get your one true love…"

_OHmygodohMYgodohmyGODohmygodohmygodohmygodOHMYGOD –_

"… Kiba!"

_ohmy – WHAT?_

She stared at him. And he stared back, grinning. She blinked. He grinned, slightly nervous.

Blink. Grin.

Blink. Grin.

Blink… "Are you okay, Hinata?" Grin faltering.

And then, as all of Hinata's brain cells overworked themselves, pulverizing her brain completely and frying it alive, all of the hemoglobin in her red blood cells rushed upwards to her face, and she fainted.

"Hinata? _Hinata_!" he shouted, shaking her body frantically. "Are you okay? _Hinata_!!"

It couldn't have been worse with the background music (complete with violins, piano and a wailing singstress) to a dramatic Asian TV-series in the background (Naruto had left the TV on prior to checking in on her) with sobbing people crying, "_Don't die! Don't die!_" when suddenly, blaring sirens caused him to jump.

"This is the police!" the metallic sound of a megaphone could be heard outside of the apartment. "We have you surrounded! Uzumaki Naruto, you've been arrested for the assault and kidnapping of Hyuuga Hinata!"

_

* * *

_

My heart's sinking like a weight

* * *

Sakura woke up to the sound of chirping birds.

But something was off. The chirping birds not only didn't cease to repeat themselves – they sounded almost _robotic_ –

Realizing with a grin what the source of the noise was, she fumbled around on her bedside table, fighting to open her eyes, as her hand closed around her bright pink Motorola.

_1 New Message From: Tenten_, the screen flashed at her as she groaned once more as she glanced at the clock in the corner – 10 a.m. Her first class started at half past ten as the teacher for her first class was down with the flu, but that also meant she had to get ready in ten minutes.

_Are you okay? _were the first words she read as she opened the message sent shortly after 3 a.m., _I haven't heard from you all night and I can't find the others either. I hope you're fine. I've patched up things with Neji now, but are you with Hinata? Please tell me you're with Hinata. She's gone, and Neji's all mad, and I think he's going to kill the cop we're talking to and –_

The message had ended there, probably because she had been too frantic writing it. "Oh my God," she mumbled for herself, eyes wide with worry. She had never been particularly close with her, but she rather liked her; she was pretty sweet and kind, and very caring. "What if something has happened to her?"

"The Hyuuga heiress is with the dobe," a dark voice spoke up in the corner, causing her to jump in surprise, "if that's what you're talking to yourself about."

"_OH MY GOD_!" she half-shrieked, until she met the glance of the extremely annoyed person situated on her computer chair. "S- Sasuke-kun?"

"No, the Santa Claus," he threw back venomously. "And before you get any twisted ideas, you had passed out and I remembered where your spare key was."

"… Passed out?" she questioned aloud, confused. She couldn't have just passed out for no particular reason. Racking her brain for foggy memories, she recalled that they had been in a club… Ino had asked her to join her at the bar and she…

Paling, another memory was summoned with perfect clarity.

_I love you._

She couldn't have. After all these years… after _everything_ they had been through… she couldn't have been stupid enough to –

"Get out of bed and get ready," he snapped irritably as he arose, proceeding towards the exit of her bedroom, "we're supposed to be in class in half an hour."

"Sasuke -," she spoke up, and he halted, abruptly. The unsaid suffix lingered in the air, almost pressuring her to utter it out loud, and for the fraction of a second, it seemed like the world's weight had been put unto her shoulders.

It wasn't just a suffix.

It was everything. Everything they had had, everything they had said and done, everything she had _felt_ –

And she couldn't do it. She couldn't call back what had once been.

Because she didn't have the right, nor the guts, to do it.

"What I said last night…," Sakura instead chose to say, swallowing in an attempt to moisten her unbelievably dry throat, "… you know… I… I didn't mean it."

He didn't have to ask what she meant. Both of them knew.

There was a tense, or rather, _intense_ silence that descended as she fought against herself, fought against every little instinct in her body screaming at her for being a liar, for being so weak, so _cowardly_ –

"I know," he responded simply, _shortly_, with a tone that ended the discussion – not that there was any to begin with.

And just like that, as though it had been the easiest thing in the world

(_whilst she was struggling hard not to cry, not to shed any tears or to show any _weakness)

and as if it didn't feel as though he had just reached inside her chest, clawing out her heart and squeezed it to nothing but a bloody pulp and thrown it outside of the window to be battered by the wind and rain

(_even though she didn't want to be that _dramatic, _that _weak_, but she couldn't help it, not when it was _him, _who was walking through that door, who seemed so completely unfazed by it all that she wanted to scream at him and shake him and hit him just to make him _react_, just to make him feel one thousandth of what _she_ felt)_

he strode out of her room, not glancing once across his shoulder, and slammed the door shut.

* * *

_I know that I hurt you, things will never be the same  
The only love I ever knew  
And I threw it all away…_

* * *

Okay, am I supposed to run now, or are you guys not on a killing spree... yet? I know that Sasuke's reaction is such a letdown, but hey, it's WAY too easy if we acquire SasuSaku just like that. Right? Right?? -looks around and only sees murderous glares and cowers behind Kiba- SAVE YOUR MOOMA, MY LOYAL GRASSHOPPER!

**Kiba: **WHAT THE FUCK? I WASN'T EVEN IN THIS CHAPTER?!?!

-ducks underneath a couch-

So, I know you guys missed Kakashi, so there was a lot more randomness in this chapter than intended. But don't worry, we'll return to ZE ANGST soon enough! -pumps fist into air- Speaking of which, I completely ADORE him!!! I cried more during Kakashi's Gaiden in the anime than I did during the Notebook. But that might've something to do with the fact that my guy frirends wouldn't stop making fun of every single scene.

And oh, ooh! Coming up next: **MAJOR SPOILERS ABOUT ZE ANGSTY SASUSAKU PAST**. Or fluffy. Or both. Yeah. But don't worry, there'll be plenty of ZE ANGST! and LA FLUFF! next chapter as well.

And ZOMG! I bought les shoes of PERFECTION I was talking about in the last chapter. I'm so in love with them. They're perfect, black high-heels that are just AMAZING. And so what if my feet die in them? They're GORGEOUS!!!

Okay, enough of my ranting about shoes. You guys still haven't answered: WHO'S YOUR FAVORITE CHARACTER??

Thanks for all the reviews, and PLEASE keep on reviewing!! I can't believe we hit 200 reviews!!! I'm so happy!!!!!!

So keep on reviewing, yeah? (They keep me motivated to write the next chapter when I slack off. There. Now, obey High-Heels-Goddess-Sama and REVIEW.)


	11. o1o: the eversince

**Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own Naruto. I wish I did, because I SOOO want to know what happens next. Oh, and I don't own The Carpenters, which means that I don't own the song "Yesterday Once More"... and fuck, I don't own those gorgeous Pucci heels I describe in this chapter. Or Sasuke's Benz. Or any of the poor hair products victimized by the Resident Hair Freak, aka Neji.**

**Neither do I own Yiruma's "Eversince".**

I was greatly inspired by different piano pieces while writing this, so here's a tiny soundtrack compiled that I suggest you listen to (in that order) while reading:

I also advise for you to start listening to the piano AFTER the first part.

**_Kevin Kern - After the Rain  
Yiruma - Till I Find You  
Yiruma - Eversince  
The Carpenters - Yesterday Once More (heartBtrue's version on YouTube)  
Yiruma - Love Me  
Kyle Landry - Trail of Tears  
Ryuichi Sakamoto - Forbidden Colors_**

It all depends on the speed of your reading, but every song is supposed to correspond about one part. (For the longest part - you'll know which one I mean, I estimated a total of about 2-3 songs.)

* * *

I remember the first time I met _him._

(_It was a boring, cloudy day, and for the first time in my life, at what I considered the very adult age of eight and a half, I was wearing Mikoto-san's high-heels)_

I, quite literally, _fell _for him, and he bent down, with an outstretched hand and a smile

(_not a _smirk,_ or a _frown_, but a _smile)

as I stared into the (second) most beautiful pair of obsidian eyes I had ever seen.

(_and, for the fraction of a moment, I was taken by their similarity)_

After he had helped the barely coherent me up on my feet and left, I asked Sasuke –

(_"Who was _that?")

- he answered, with quite clear irritation, but also a sting of pride;

(_"That was my brother.")_

And after that, everything went downhill.

**

* * *

**

o1o.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry! I'm s-sorry! I-I-I'm s-so sorry!" blubbered the Hyuuga heiress for at least the fiftieth time the same hour and bowed so many times she almost knocked the head belonging to the blonde on the receiving end of the seemingly infinite stream of apologies.

"It's nothing," Naruto assured her with a wide grin – which quickly faded at Neji's murderous glare – for the umpteenth time. "It's really nothing, I mean, I didn't get in any trouble since I didn't do anything, did I?"

"… There was no _proof_," snarled Neji ferociously as his white orbs glimmered dangerously as the blonde backed away another few decimeters for his own safety. "But that doesn't _mean _that nothing happened, _Uzumaki_."

"_God,_ Neji!" yelled the blonde as his cheeks flushed slightly at the idea, causing the fangirls perked outside of the open classroom door swoon – only to be shushed by their peers; Naruto was forbidden fruit, due to his unsettled feud with Ami. "I've told you already, nothing happened! And stop calling me _Uzumaki_!"

Sasuke – who had paid no heed to the conversation whatsoever, refraining even from his favorite pastime of insulting Naruto – looked up briefly from the text book he had devoted himself to the last half an hour.

To his amusement, it seemed like the blonde was definitely in danger; Neji was sharpening his pencil, murder intent as clear as the October sky outside, and the only one to stop him – Tenten, naturally, who had seemingly patched things up with the Hyuuga after quite a long debate – wasn't even present to save Naruto from most likely getting castrated in front of their fangirls, who only seemed interested in the development of what they had dubbed "the love-hate yaoi relationship of NejiNaru", to which Sasuke could only laugh.

And not kindly, either.

"_Uzumaki_," the abovementioned hissed through gritted teeth as he stomped nearer to the horrified blonde with eyes narrowed to slits as the fangirls screeched outside as he backed him up against the wall, "I do not _care_ if Hinata-sama is too soft-hearted to retell the horrors of being held captive by you –" ("But I didn't hold her captive!" howled Naruto with no results,) " – but do not _think _that I will simply overlook any possible _obscenities_ that might've occurred whilst Hinata-sama was in too much of a vulnerable state to even put up a fight…"

"I – she – there weren't any _obscenities_!" he bellowed, his face turning slightly purple as Hinata tried to break the two apart to no avail. His eyes darted about in the classroom in search of possible assistance; halting on Kiba, who had barely spoken a word since they had arrived, and who had a strangely distorted grimace unto his face, he sprinted over before Neji had the chance to growl. "There really weren't, Kiba! I swear!"

"Is he dating _Kiba_?" a fangirl pondered aloud in a whisper that was too loud to be categorized as such, and almost toppled over as more fangirls tried to quite indiscreetly peek in through the door.

"But isn't he living with _Sasuke_? And now Neji _and _Kiba? What a slut!"

"Wha – no –" Naruto looked as though he was about to cry. Even Neji looked faintly amused, carefully hidden behind an exterior of irritation, only to be betrayed by the insinuation of a smug smirk on his face. "It's not like that, Kiba! I mean… like… Hinata! You…, you like her, right? No, wait, that's too much of a direct question!"

"Aww, how sweet," another fangirl _whispered_, "it's a love triangle consisting of him, Kiba and Hinata. He's afraid that Kiba likes Hinata instead of him."

"No! No! _No_!" screeched the blonde, his head whipping at all sides as he did so in an attempt to speak to everyone. "Kiba, I swear, it's not like that! I like _girls_! But not Hinata! I mean, I don't _dislike _her, and it's not like she's not pretty, she's got pretty nice curves, but –"

If looks could've killed, Neji would already have discarded Naruto's corpse long ago.

" – no! I mean, I… anyway, nothing _happened_ last night, because to me… to me, Hinata is… Hinata has a penis!"

There was a heavy silence lingering in the air, and if it could've taken shape in something, it would've been a gigantic layer of thick, jet-black venomous smoke.

"What," Kiba said slowly with a gaze that clearly informed everybody that he doubted Naruto's mental health, "are you talking about?"

"Oh my _God_!" a girl burst out in a shushed voice that was only just a tad too loud, "does that mean that he'll actually _consider_ Hinata? Because he sees her as a guy, right? And he likes guys, doesn't he?"

"N-no! I mean, it's not like that!" he exclaimed, looking more and more distressed from the minute as Naruto's gaze dashed between the bloodthirsty Neji, the blazing red-faced Hinata, and the staring Kiba, who still seemed to be calculating the mental stability of his mind, "What I mean is… nothing happened. _Nothing_. Like, nothing. Alright? Nada! Because I… Hinata is pretty, but she likes K – I mean, Kelloggs! She likes _Kelloggs_!"

It was getting more ridiculous by the minute. Sasuke felt sorely tempted to laugh, but it'd have brought attention to himself, and sadist as he was, he preferred to watch his best friend being tortured.

"… Kelloggs?" repeated Kiba blankly with a raised eyebrow. Sasuke was slightly astonished at his lack of response; he was usually just as loud as Naruto, but since the moment he had arrived in the classroom, he had been strangely quiet.

"Y-yes!" Naruto babbled on enthusiastically, "Um, so that's… that's why… Kiba, you should come along today with me and Hinata so we can _do it_ all together in Hinata's bedroom!"

There was another strained silence, during which Sasuke couldn't help but smirk, Kiba's eyebrow twitched bizarrely and Neji broke his pencil.

And Hinata… well, she looked like she was about to faint as she steadied herself against a wall.

"I… I meant the group project!" the blonde added defensively as he looked pleadingly at Sasuke, who only continued to sneer (_sadistically_) at him. "… Not… you know… I mean, it's not like…"

"_Uzumaki_," growled Neji, and the blonde seemed like he wanted to scream like a little girl – with good reason, considering how the previous had never seemed more frightening than now, "you're going _down_."

"Wha – but – I – NO! _NO_! I'm in love with Sakura-chan! SAKURA-CHAN! Don't get me wrong!" he yelled, swiveling about frantically to face his (_merciless_) audience.

Sasuke flinched as the rest of the conversation turned deaf to his ears. The mention of the pinkette was a reminder to his task this afternoon; after a quite strained and awkward breakfast, she had announced that they'd have 'boyfriend test lessons' after school. He hadn't seen her since, as she had rushed off to class as fast as possible as soon as they had set foot in front of the school building.

_I love you, _the words still haunted his mind – she had said they meant nothing, hadn't she? – and then there was that smile in her jade eyes, that familiar smile that'd still remain there no matter how much they bickered with no serious intent –

(_"Sasuke-_kun! _Stop eating your tomatoes and _listen_ while I'm talking!" –_

_- "Sasuke-kun? What do you think? Don't I look a bit more like a woman now, _hmm?_" –_

_- "Sasuke-kun?" –_

_- "Sasuke-kun!" –_

_- "Sasuke-kun…" -)_

- that familiar smile that had once seemed to be reserved for him

(_and for _him_, also, but that was a topic Sasuke would rather not touch upon)_

and somehow, _somewhere_, he could feel something beginning to crack.

Leaning back into his chair, he was rudely torn back to reality when Naruto dove behind him, and gripping his shoulders so tightly Sasuke was quite sure they'd break, he whimpered, "_Save_ me, bastard!"

A cue of swooning (and even some nose-bleeding from the extremes) fangirls outside as Sasuke in vain tried to pry the blonde's hands off him, and then, in a snarl; "Get _off_, dead-last."

"C'mon, Sasuke-teme!" he whined as he dodged another one of Neji's blows with the pencil to Hinata's anxious cries – he could only wonder what the blockhead had said to anger the Hyuuga again; "I'm your _best friend_! Your _brother_! Blood is thicker than water, you _traitor_!"

Brother.

Brother.

_Brother_.

The word seemed to echo in his mind

(_and he vaguely wondered when his mind had become such a meaningless void to only parrot others' words)_

in more than just an uncomfortable manner, awakening memories. Memories Sasuke would rather not think of.

As he summoned his best glare across his shoulder at the blue orbs behind him which were filled with unshed tears of pain and fear, he felt a tiny jolt of guilt; here he was, the only person who had taken him in and still cared after _that_, the person that had been like a brother

(_more of a brother than _him)

for all these years, and he was about to do the worst thing possible to him.

He had done it once. It had not mattered back then – Naruto had nobly stepped aside, because he knew. He knew that he was getting in the way, that _she_ was not his to love. Not his to care for in a way more than just a friend, even if he desired to do so. He had done it in respect for Sasuke.

And neither had thought more of it than that.

But now – it was different _now_. The tables had turned, and _Sasuke_ was the one who (not so nobly) stepped aside, leaving _her_ to be with _him_.

He hadn't cared when it had happened. That Naruto would sooner or later confess his feelings was a given, and he had completely convinced himself that what was _her_ business was no longer his. Of course, if Naruto had the bad taste to repeat the mistake Sasuke had done, he could do nothing more than just warn him – again, a warning to deaf ears.

But he hadn't expected all of this – or _any_ of it – and least of all, _that_ –

(_"I love you."_)

- and that had changed everything.

But he hadn't the right to change _anything_.

Because if he did, if he followed these sickening impulses and betrayed the only person who had stood by him for almost ten years through thick and thin, the only person who had kept believing in him despite everything –

- in what way was he better than _him_?

The mere thought made him unintentionally clench his fists in raw rage. This, however, remained unnoticed as Naruto gave a loud screech as Neji tried to poke him (or rather, his eyes) savagely with the pencil on either side of Sasuke's head.

_Traitor_, Naruto's previous word was thrown at him, and all of the previous playful intent in the word was gone, replaced by the accusing tone he himself had used for _him_.

_If you only knew_, was all he could say in his own mental defense.

Therefore, Sasuke rasped, annoyed; "_Enough_."

The buzz in the room (and beyond it) came to a halt; Kiba, who had remained uncharacteristically aloof, merely raised his eyebrow higher; Hinata looked anxiously at him; Neji narrowed his eyes, whereas Naruto widened his, and the fangirls outside were about to get a heart attack from the anticipation.

"Neji," he said with the deadly calm before a hurricane, "you need to calm down. You know very well this blockhead has the same ability of speech as a newborn monkey –" ("_Hey_!" Naruto burst out, but nobody cared to listen to him,) "- and whereas I can't deny that he's not at least as perverted as the be-damned Kakashi, I'm sure that his abysmal brain would barely be able to see even an opportunity of doing anything _obscene_."

("Did you hear that?" Naruto said proudly, "I've got an abysmal brain! You guys just _wish_ you had an ab – abysm… abysmilicous brain!" To which the fangirls outside giggled, and Neji and Kiba cued, "Moron.")

"And Naruto," he hissed dangerously as he gave him a Glare, "if you don't get your hands off my shoulders _now_, I swear to God I will slit your wrists and break them beyond repair, and I will wring your head and neck off _your _shoulders and use it as a decoration in the house before I sell it off as a souvenir at the next concert."

Say whatever you wanted about Sasuke, but when he made an attempt to be Mr. Nice Guy, he was anything but a prick.

("It's the whip of love!" the fangirls screamed outside.)

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto merely grinned at him, rolling his eyes as he withdrew and made his way towards the door before Neji could change his mind. "Whatever you say, bastard. I'll see you guys in class, I've got to go."

A tiny pause fell after the blonde's exit, when Ino – who had previously occupied herself by scrawling a strange – and slightly distorted – pineapple with arms and legs sleeping in the middle of the park with what looked like hobos in her notebook – spoke up, making everybody jump slightly; "So, about Naruto's birthday…"

Sasuke furrowed his brow again. It was seldom that one didn't notice Yamanaka Ino – she automatically drew attention to herself, in one way or another. The fact that they hadn't been aware of her presence before now told his instincts that something was off.

_Very _off.

"… What about it?" Neji spoke up tonelessly, who now massaged his temples in a displeased manner, having obviously been (_not the first one_) donned a headache by the flagrant powers of annoyance belonging to the person in question.

"Where's it going to be this year, again?"

The question made Sasuke's eyebrow rise higher. Something was _definitely _wrong.

"I-it's going to b-be in K-Konoha Grand H-hotel," the Hyuuga heiress supplied informatively, "o-on account of the pr-profits _K-Konoha's Golden L-leaf_ has m-made this y-year."

"Right…," she drawled in response, tapping the yellow pencil against her chin in deep thought. "Right."

What could it be that seemed to occupy her mind? Sasuke mused with a deepened frown. For her to not even react to the fact that the party was held in one of the most requested and eloquent party premises in Konoha…

_Is it perhaps her parents? _

The mere thought bothered him. "_I caught Ino's father… with another woman_." Could it be _that_ again? But he had somehow gotten the idea that Inoichi had been getting better… or why else would he had stayed with Ino's mother, after all?

"Ino," he therefore spoke, and there was a slight softness in his tone applied for the situation.

"Hmm?" she spoke up with an absent-minded smile. "Oh, sorry. I was just… well, I don't really know what to get Naruto. What're you guys going to get him?"

He knew she was lying. It just frustrated him slightly to not know what exactly was the _truth_.

Sakura had once amused herself during her period of clichéd romance novels during middle school by thinking of Sasuke as the typical anti-hero; he seemed to possess no traits that seemed to belong to a traditional story hero, as opposed to, for example, Naruto – yet, he seemed to have 'an obsession of trying to be noble and save the day whenever things get bad'.

But there was nothing noble about this, at all. Sasuke wasn't trying to be a shining knight in armor – he didn't even _want_ to be one.

He was just very well aware of what it felt to have a family being torn apart.

And it was a feeling he didn't wish on anybody else but the very person who had caused it in the first place.

(_And perhaps Orochimaru, as well. And Kabuto. And the rest of Oto. But it sounded better with just the previous.)_

"Ino," he repeated, a bit more stubbornly and sterner this time – having come to understand what Naruto dubbed 'Sasukenese' (_with much 'back-stage' help from Sakura_), Ino replied with a slight laugh; "Really, it's nothing, Sasuke-kun."

There was another tense silence as Sasuke stared sharply at her to display his transparent distrust in her statement, as Kiba and Hinata merely watched, when Neji suddenly broke it by saying, "The Garnier Fructis Complete Collection, Collector's Edition."

The remaining foursome merely blinked at him; one in confusion, one apathetic (but with a slightly arched eyebrow), one in mere disbelief, and finally, the fourth couldn't help but feel his lips twitch as he said, for the first time showing none of the detached attitude thus far; "Dude, you're crazy, you know that?"

Scowling, Neji retorted; "I was simply supplying an answer for Yamanaka's earlier question."

"Because _that_ makes you less crazy?" laughed Ino. "God, Tenten wasn't kidding when she said you weren't just a _freak _when it came to fixing your hair – you're an _addict_."

"Tenten?" said the Hyuuga with a renewed tone of interest. "Has she talked about me?"

"Well, she has told us that you have every hair product ever available for purchase for mankind. Like, she even told you that you once bought this freaky Herbal Essences limited edition shampoo only available in US –"

"Hair," Neji breathed defensively and with a tone that suggested _he_ thought of _Ino_ with something a little less flattering than just plain _crazy_, "is an indication of health and youth. Besides the fact that well-groomed hair has been scientifically proven to influence one's mental state of mind in a positive manner, it also bears great social significance for human beings. Naturally, it is a more visible sign for the state of one's hygiene also – and the importance in finding the right products for one's hair also increases the overall affectivity of one's academic and miscellaneous results, as one's mental state of mind naturally makes a difference when trying to make an accomplishment."

_Silence_ would not be the right word for what came afterwards. For lack of a better word than what seemed to be the aftermath of the Apocalypse, the mutual sound emanating from the foursome – and the audience in the corridor – was a descriptive, "…………………."

Kiba was the first to snap out of the trance. "Dude," he spoke slowly, looking in a slightly alarmed manner at the upset Hyuuga. "Did you just hold a lecture about _hair_?"

"And are you telling me," Ino pressed on in the same tone, "that you're buying Naruto _shampoo _because you want to improve his _academic results_? Are you serious? The only way somebody could improve his academic results would be a brain transplant."

As Neji seemed quite ready to karate-chop both his offenders to death and then resurrect them to force-feed them his least favorite kind of shampoo – _Sexy Hair Pumpkin Rehydrating Shampoo_ – along with dishes that Tenten had prepared (because the bun-haired Chinese's culinary skills were about as amazing as Sasuke's of complimenting others), whilst forcing them to watch the entirety of his gory horror movie collection, Hinata decided to jump in and save the day.

"… U-um, so wh-what are y-you going to g-get him th-then, Kiba-kun, Sasuke-kun, Ino-san?"

"Ino-_chan_," she automatically corrected her for the umpteenth time to no avail.

Kiba, whose insinuation to a grin faded away the second she had addressed him, shrugged carelessly, and Ino added thoughtfully, "I was actually thinking of going shopping for Naruto's birthday present today, if you wanted to come, Sasuke-kun…?"

Guilt surged through him as he was reminded of what he was actually supposed to be doing the very same afternoon. Sakura had asked him not to speak to Ino of the lessons – Ino was vaguely aware that Sakura was helping them out in their relationship, but not to what extent

(_the fact that it had all been Ino's idea from the beginning didn't strike him at all, which was just according to plan_)

and he'd prefer it that way.

Especially after his quite unorthodox thoughts as of lately.

(_"I love you!")_

Not that he thought like _that_ – he was not Kakashi nor Kiba, or even Naruto, the mildest of the Perverted Musketeers

(_even though he was undeniably a teenager with hormones, but that was another story_)

but it was immoral. _Bad_, to say the least – he was dating a girl who had a complex after her father had cheated on his mother, saw him as his first love, and he was feeling… _strange_ (again, to say the least) over the fact that her best friend had declared a love for him he had waited for four years ago, just to say that she had only been drunk and not making sense, which was probably the most believable reason why she had done it in the first place.

_Perfect_, he thought dryly.

"… I've plans," he simply explained evasively, but whether it had been noticeable or not was not shown as Ino, instead of throwing her usual child's tantrum, instead surprised him by _grinning_,

(_because even though she was a talented actress, and surrounded by equally talented actresses and actors, Sasuke could tell that smile was real_)

and saying; "Oh, no worries! I'll just go with Shikamaru, the guy I'm tutoring that you met last night, you know. … I mean," she hastily added in defense, as though somebody had just accused her of her choice, "we've a tutoring session anyway, and I was just thinking, you know, it doesn't mean anything, I –"

_Perhaps_, he thought as the rest of Ino's rant was lost to his hearing, _it would be easier just to ignore_ her.

Just to pretend that nothing had ever been there, that nothing had ever happened. Keeping a strict , only just business-based relationship as they had intended to do in the beginning of _everything_.

(_They had been foolish, naïve – they should've known that with _them_, it'd never be 'only just')_

"It's fine," was all he responded, his voice devoid of emotion.

But he knew it was impossible. And perhaps, just _perhaps_ – so did she.

They could play make-believe as much as they wanted to, but they knew that those chains they had forced themselves to break over time, space and with endless effort, could not simply be relinquished with such an easy thing as a simple _desire _to do so.

Or perhaps, he further mused, they had never even been broken.

Maybe it was just a fracture. A crack, a rift that had surfaced that they had been refraining from healing.

And now, faster before than anybody could've been able to digest what had just happened, it had reattached. Just like that. No explosion, no loud sound effects – but yet, it left them as stunned as there had been such.

But he wasn't being selfish. (_Or so he'd like to think.)_ He was doing it, as _she_ had put it, for _her_. He glanced sideways at the blonde in question, who was now discussing the differences between rouge and blush with the resident makeup expert, Hinata, underneath the lighting of Konoha Grand Hotel.

_Yes_, he decided absent-mindedly as he scooped his things unceremoniously into his bag and shoved past the fangirls in order to get to class after an equally preoccupied goodbye to his peers, _I'm doing it for her._

* * *

_I'm okay. I'm fine. Just breathe. BREATHE. B-R-E-A-T-H-E. In, out, in, out. Not that fast, but good. When you open your eyes, you're sitting underneath a cherry blossom tree with the entire _Twilight _series and you're currently enjoying a cup of nice tea. Yes. Yes. That's it._

But as Haruno Sakura flipped her emerald orbs open, she was still perched in the front seat of a silver (_and undeniably flashy_) Mercedes-Benz SLR, fidgeting nervously with the mp3-player in her hands that in turn were placed on her lap, and even though she was focusing on the beautiful scenery of Konoha flashing past her eyes, she was still

(_unfortunately, unbelievably, un-everything-ly that you can think of)_

sitting next to _the_ Uchiha Sasuke.

_You're the one who suggested it, _she reprimanded herself sternly when she felt sorely tempted to fling open the car door, rush out of the vehicle and throw herself into the water underneath the bridge on which they were now driving on. _C'mon. This is Sasuke. Uchiha _Sasuke._ You grew up with this guy. There's got to be some… weird moments to think of so this doesn't get awkward. Yes. Think of something – anything –_

But all that came to mind was the time when he had beat the living daylights out of a couple of guys who had dared to make inappropriate suggestions – when he had _smiled_, not _smirked_ once as a child – when –

"_I love you_."

And his face expression – always so impossible to penetrate, always careful not to expose not more so that people would never come to understand him – carving his features with mere shock, bewildered beyond comprehension.

Sakura wanted to bang her head against the window when she suddenly noticed that he was _speaking_. To her, nonetheless.

(_Duh, who else is in the car, smartass? _she berated herself mentally.)

"… kura. _Sakura_."

A Lesson of Life for those who want to Survive An Encounter with a Certain Uchiha Sasuke:

One – never, _ever_ dare to insinuate any possible relationship beyond platonic with a Certain Uzumaki Naruto.

Two – never, _ever_ speak of his family.

Three – never, _ever_… well, never, ever, and here's another _ever_ thrown in for good measure so that the message truly sinks in, _ever_ piss the Certain Uchiha Sasuke off.

And it seemed, judging by the tone of the Certain Uchiha Sasuke, that Haruno Sakura had successfully accomplished Number Three.

"I-I'm sorry, um, S-Sasuke," she stuttered in a shockingly accurate impression of Hinata, "I w-was just… um… er…"

Her mind was blank for excuses. Struggling for something to say, she decided a subtle topic change would be the easiest way to distract him. "So," she said, and prolonged the vocal so that she'd have time to compose herself and not sound like a twelve-year-old _Prince Sasuke Fanclub_ member, "are you – how do you – why are you wearing _that_?"

_So much for being subtle._

The creases on his forehead only continued to deepen. "What do you mean, '_that_'?"

The poisonous sarcasm dripping in his tone almost seemed as harmful as a piercing spear, and she damned herself again for letting herself be so affected so easily. In an attempt to remoisten her dry throat, she gulped. "U-um… your… Konoha Soccer's Club t-shirt. It's just, um… I thought you quit."

"I did," he responded matter-of-factly.

"But you're wearing it now," she proceeded confusedly.

"I do," he replied.

"… But I thought Ino had your t-shirt. She wore it, you know, after your concert in Oto."

"She did," he answered.

"But I thought she'd protest if you tried to take it back. And you know, not be happy about it in general and regret that she didn't make a copy of it, or something. Or try to do some evil plotting on how to take it back."

"She does," he said.

Annoyed by his two-word-answers and in an attempt to gain a more descriptive sentence from his mouth, she prodded; "So, how come you've the t-shirt?"

"The dobe," he growled, and a scowl of irritation etched itself onto his (_pretty_) features. "He went to pick up our laundry, and wound up with the wrong laundry basket. So we've lost most of our clothes. So I asked for her to return it."

Sakura giggled in response, and when that, too, faded into a more comfortable silence, a smirk of triumph surfaced – she had succeeded with making him stop with the two-word sentences, at the very least. Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, Sasuke asked, "What're you smirking about?"

"Oh," she twittered gleefully, "nothing."

"… Hn," he replied, mirroring her smirk – and even for a fleeting moment, things felt like just before. A relaxed atmosphere settled in until Sakura caught sight of the building they were nearing.

"That's…" She trailed off, goggling wide-eyed at the shopping center before her. "We're going to _Kinjo_?"

"Aa."

"But it's… _expensive_," she sputtered as the different stores were advertised on the glass wall of the shopping center; _Ralph Lauren_ – _Calvin Klein – Louis Vuitton – Miu Miu –_

"Aa," he repeated, throwing a '_duh_'-glance her way. Instinctively, she felt a need to open her mouth and comment on how filthily rich Uchihas were, when the realization that he no longer was one of them struck her with a nauseating blow to her gut.

_And it's my fault. It's all my fault –_

("_Say, Sakura – if you'd choose between me and my foolish little brother, who would you choose?_")

The tears threatened to spill over again, but knowing crying was a weakness in his eyes, she pressed them back. How could she have been so stupid? So naïve? She should've said something to his defense back then, _anything _– after all, she was the one who had triggered it all…

And yet, all she could've done was stand there and watch, completely paralyzed, as Sasuke's dreams fell down and shattered to pieces, the entire world coming down on his head.

How much hadn't he fought these past years? Struggled to make a name out of Uchiha Sasuke, make himself more than just the prestigious Uchiha who had been disowned by his very own parents. For him to even leave for Oto to achieve his goals – and then _Konoha's Golden Leaf_; all of the money in his possession now was nothing his parents had ever given him…

"Sakura," he uttered, and just as simple as that, he brought her down to Earth again with a comfortable thud. It was strange how just the sound of her name could sound so perfect when he said it, how it could make her melt inside like a marshmallow in a fire.

She turned her head slowly to face Sasuke; he was looking just as emotionless, bordering on _bored_, as usual, but there was a curiosity in his eyes, and the beginning of a frown on his face. She couldn't help but smile – softly, _wondrously_, because it truly _was_ a wonder that he could've ever forgiven her.

Even if it had only been for Ino's sake.

"I'm coming," she murmured as she promptly stepped out of the car and followed him inside.

* * *

"Geez," muttered Naruto sourly for at least the tenth time the same hour as he tapped his pencil impatiently against the finely crafted bamboo table, "what a _jerk_."

Hinata, the person sitting next to him in the library in the Hyuuga compound, merely smiled. "I-it's alright, N-Naruto-k-kun."

"No, it's _not_!" he answered hotly, and gesturing with his hands so avidly that he almost bowled his cup of tea over (_which Hinata hurriedly rescued by pulling it farther away from him_), he added; "I mean, it's one thing to reject us, right? But the guy isn't even _replying _when I ask if he can pick you up for my party, and that I'll try to get Neji out of the way. Seriously! Can you believe him?"

Her smile only broadened an inch as the blonde stared at her, obviously more upset than she was. "K-Kiba-kun h-has his r-r-reasons, I g-guess."

A scowl adorned itself onto his face as he remarked, incredulity in his tone; "Well, what reasons would that be? Bringing those cheap blonde twins he hooked up with at the club last night?" Immediately catching his own mistake, Naruto winced and adapted an apologetic expression. "Oh, sorry, Hinata, I didn't – I seriously wasn't –"

Hinata only watched, still amazed by the strangeness of all of this, as the blonde's shoulders slumped in defeat, having obviously thought he hurt her. "I'm the worst matchmaker ever, aren't I?"

It actually depended on how one wanted to see it, she thought in response. On one hand, he had gotten all things mixed up and misdirected her affection for _himself_to Kiba, which was just completely random as Kiba and she maintained a completely platonic relation, and had she truly been in love with him, Naruto's meddling would be short of disastrous; on the other, it wasn't _really _matchmaking as she wasn't _actually _harboring feelings for him…

And being the sweet girl Hinata was, she preferred number two. "N-no, not at a-all, N-Naruto-kun."

"You're always like that." The insinuation of a slight smile ghosted on his lips, but was unclear as he regarded her with an air of seriousness. The depth of his stare – blue eyes _really _were more captivating – caused her cheeks to heat up in embarrassment.

"L-like wh-what?" she finally managed to stutter in confusion, breaking the silence.

Heaving a sigh, he dramatically exclaimed, "Too _nice_! I mean, this morning was just a total failure. And well, lunch, too. And the afternoon, and now, and…" Halting himself with another exasperated sigh, he added miserably, "You should've asked Ino to do this instead."

Before Hinata could pose an answer, he frowned and continued rambling; "Nah, she's way too much of a blabbermouth… but if I discreetly ask for advice on how to hook you and Kiba up…"

"I-it's okay," she interjected him, and the smile that she had been suppressing as to not make her look too much of a maniac broke through, slowly spreading onto her face.

Surprise flitted through Naruto's azure orbs, and became even more evident when he widened them. "Really? I mean… I'm going to screw this up, you know?"

She couldn't help it. It struck her that she might be looking just a _tad_ too gleeful to look normal, but if it actually showed, Naruto didn't seem to react to it. "I-it's okay," she only repeated.

Then, causing relief to rush through her, he flashed his trademark grin to her. "You're really nice, Hinata. I like girls like you!"

Hinata felt her face turning a not all too flattering shade of magenta as her lungs were short of breath. A bulldozer as big as a skyscraper could've wrecked the Hyuuga compound to smithereens whilst screaming inhabitants would flee for their lives, and she wouldn't even have noticed it.

Once again, she was amazed by the sheer impact of his words. How did he do it? How did he make her feel so…

She struggled to find a word, but none came to mind. Nothing could describe this – this _euphoric _state of mind she was in. The confidence that came to life at his words was just a miniscule part of everything that was instilled in her mind and body.

Of course she knew he didn't mean it more than a platonic sense (_even if the voice who said so was getting increasingly weaker with every heartbeat_). But nonetheless, for him to even _like _her…

Ever since she was a child, Hinata had heard she was difficult to get along with. The Main family had called her 'weak' and 'spoiled' – the Branch family had simply thought of her as the former. What Hiashi's opinion was remained only too clear to this day. When she had enrolled into kindergarten, the other children had called her 'weird' and 'too silent' – she made conversing awkward and uncomfortable, and they also hated her because of her father; Hiashi was infamous for having wrecked dozens of smaller companies for Hyuuga Corp., and it was the offspring of the parents who owned these companies that she had met and been bullied by.

At an older age, Hinata had stopped being physically bullied, but she was still taunted – her silence, her stuttering, her abnormal white eyes… her position in the despised Hyuuga family… and as of lately, envy due to the clique in which she had been placed, but felt as though she didn't belong in…

Not that her peers had ever complained about her to her face, but she had always been positive that they had thought of her as irritating in one or another way. She was like a living statue, always present, but never speaking.

And for Naruto to _like _her, even if it only was in the platonic sense…

Hinata got her rude wake-up call, making her almost fall off the chair, when Naruto heaved an angry sigh. "Damn, this is _hard_!" he complained, gesturing at the assignment he had obviously been staring at during her 'little' spaceout. "What the hell are we supposed to talk about in front of the class? 'Life-changing issues'… trust Iruka-sensei to come up with weird stuff like that!"

He didn't react when Hinata merely blinked at him, trying to get out of her Naruto-induced trance in order to focus on the task at hand, as his rant obviously had been meant to be more like a monologue rather than dialogue. She contemplated his problem, and then, an idea came to her.

"Um… wecouldwriteaboutloneliness," she spoke hurriedly in one breath, the flush on her cheeks deepening in color.

A less angelic being than Hinata would've described Naruto's expression as 'stupid' as the blonde only blinked at her. "What?"

"U-um..." She struggled to breathe evenly, but her exhalation was shaky when she further explained, "W-w-we c-could wr-write a-about… l-loneliness."

The suggestion sounded much lamer than it had when she had voiced it in her head. But she had been so _sure_ – it was something life-altering, alright, and both of them knew what it was. Her glance flitting sideways timidly, she barely managed to catch a glimpse of Naruto's shocked face expression.

It was a bad idea. It definitely was. Who'd write about such a sensitive topic anyway? He'd probably get mad at her. Yes, or else just get irritated by her stupid idea –

"Loneliness," he pondered aloud thoughtfully, and his tone seemed so genuine, without a trace of irony in it, that she had to fight as to not make her drumming pulse louder than it already was, lest he heard it. "Like, how?"

"P-perhaps… o-ostraci-cization," she murmured, her voice breaking. The word 'ostracization' awakened one too many painful memory, but she had started it, and she needed to keep on going.

"Ostra… what?" Daring to look at him again, and almost drowning in his azure orbs again (_only managing to recover herself in the last second_), she saw his dumbfounded expression.

"B-being… ignored." So he hadn't understood what it was. It was coming now. It definitely was – the scoffing laugh, at best, a taunting remark at worst… or could it get worse? "F-frozen out b-by others… _b-bullying_," she added in a barely existent voice.

But once again, Naruto amazed by her by beaming at her in response. "Yeah!" he exclaimed enthusiastically, his eyes glimmering with an almost comical sparkle in the kitchen light. "That's a life-changing issue for sure! And it's, you know, not something boring, like the global warming or some freaky science shit that Sasuke-teme would probably write about! You're a _genius_, Hinata!"

Hinata could feel her face go up in flames, her mental state of mind more than happy to wander back to its joyous daze again; she had been expecting things, yes, but not _that_. A _genius_? The vocabulary her brain had supplied that was available for the occasion had more in the negative sense

(_idiot – dork – stupid, and those were only the mild ones_)

and even the slightest positive comment, as one of utter politeness and dejection, had still only involved something like, 'it sounds like a good idea, but _no_'.

"… Hinata?"

"H-huh?" she stuttered unsurely, blinking at him and flushing an even darker red when she noticed that his face had leaned closer to inspect her curiously. "S-sorry?"

"Nah, it's okay," he yawned as he stretched his arms behind his head, not even realizing that it hadn't been intended as an apology, but a simple rephrasing. "Man, I'm soo tired. The bastard keeps me up all night, you should know. That guy _never_ gets tired."

If her blush and slightly faint-looking expression had been any giveaway, Hinata didn't know. Either way, he hurriedly corrected himself with, "Not like _that_, I mean, it's just…"

He trailed off, quite stunned, as Hinata couldn't help the giggles escaping from her mouth. How he managed to cause misunderstandings no matter the intention behind his words was beyond her, but it was definitely amusing – and endearing, as opposed to the rest of the group's opinion (_although Sasuke would've probably agreed it was quite amusing as well had he not brushed it off with, 'oxymoronic behavior he didn't wish to be part of', but the boy was a sadist_).

She came to a halt however, when she noticed she was being observed, and turned an interesting shade of magenta. Naruto inwardly wondered how many different variants of the color red could possibly appear in her face, but on the outside, he merely grinned as he put both arms behind his head, interlacing his fingers on the nape of his neck. "That's the first time I heard you laugh, you know."

As Hinata's cheeks responded by shifting to a dark cerise, the blonde decided to interfere before she fainted due to – what did she have now again? Asthma? Or something? Well, she _had_ fainted before…

And he wasn't going to take the risk of Neji's wrath again. (Nor the _false_ accusations of having possibly used her in _any _way while she was unconscious. Which by the way didn't sound like it could've been half-bad if she _had_ been unconscious, especially the part with –

Bad train of thought. _Really _bad train of thought.)

"Hey," he therefore hurriedly changed the topic, "what do you say we go and get a cup of coffee in Kinjo? They've the best coffee shops in town, you know."

Whereas Naruto had only meant it as an innocent suggestion due to the fact that he was bored to tears with the assignment and he was dying to _move_ as he had been propped in a (quite uncomfortable) kitchen chair the last couple of hours, it turned into quite another thing in Hinata's ears.

_Is he asking me out?_ was her first thought as she vaguely was aware of her eye muscles stretching in shocks, causing her eyes to probably bulge to the size of saucers.

Quickly swatting the thought away with irritation (at herself, and then followed by disappointment that made her heart plummet into the pits of her stomach), she wondered how she could've even thought of such a thing. He wasn't in love with her. He'd never be.

He was in love with _Sakura_. The brainy pinkette who was the Hokage's apprentice at the hospital, and who would probably make it as Japan's top surgeon before the others had even graduated from college.

But somehow, her mind couldn't quite grasp her concept. She _still _couldn't believe it. It was one thing to be stuck in the library of the Hyuuga compound, forced to group together for homework, but a _wholly _other to go _out_ together, _alone_, where people could see them. The only one she had ever done that with was –

_Kiba_.

A jolt reminded her of the brunette, who had been strangely quiet all day. She could feel worry brewing in her gut; they had barely talked since the awkward drive to the club, during which she had paid more attention to Naruto than anything else, and he had seemed so _down_…

Could it really be another girl? Those blonde _twins_ Naruto had been speaking of before, perhaps? But then again, that was before the club…

Hinata was snatched back to reality when the aforementioned, who had taken the fact that there was a heavy silence lingering between them as a definite rejection, spoke slowly, and somewhat awkwardly; "But, it's, you know, okay if you don't want to…"

She realized that she hadn't answered his question yet. _Oops_. "N-no!" she burst out, half-appalled and half-embarrassed as her mind raced to keep up with the pace and think of something appropriate to say. "I m-mean, y-y-yes! I – I've _always _w-w-wanted t-to d-d-do th-that with y-you, N-Naruto-kun!"

_Yes. Well done, Hinata. Appropriate _and _subtle, to top it all off._

_And oh, by the way. You didn't sound like a drama queen, _at all.

Panic flared through her as she shut out the taunting voice in her mind. She had either sounded like a total moron, or he'd have taken the hint and she had more or less confessed to him. While he had innocently asked her to get a cup of coffee. In the Hyuuga _library_ compound, nonetheless.

But to her greatest shock as she finally dared to look at the blonde again, he was only grinning, having obviously tried to catch her eye. Something with it – she wasn't sure _what_ exactly, perhaps his crooked smile, or his glittering eyes, or _everything_ – made it feel like she was flying without wings, as cliché as it sounded. "Awesome! Let's go, then!"

* * *

"So, what do you think?"

It was incredible. Unbelievably, fucking-tastic _incredible_.

Shikamaru barely gazed at her lazily. "What's the difference between this one and the last one?"

_Well, _she bit back sarcastically in her mind, _besides the fact that they both have _plunging _necklines, _barely _cover my ass and _should _make you drool, there's _no _freaking difference._

"You _really _don't think there's any difference?" Ino instead questioned, trying to suppress the challenging tone and the frustration that was beginning to filter through her paper-thin patience.

He didn't even bother to look her up and down – like any other _normal_ guy should have, following the outline of her curves in this immensely tight dress – but merely looked her in the eye and promptly responded, "No."

Without bothering with an answer, Ino withdrew to the dressing room, fuming. What the hell was he made of? _Stone_? How could he _not _react – wasn't she attractive enough? Or was he only attracted to _hippo_s, like Temari?

The mere thought sent her into a spiral of rage as she pulled the midnight-blue mini-dress over her head and started putting on the next one. With the way she kept going, she might as well have stepped out of the dressing room _stark naked_, and he wouldn't even have batted an eyelid!

She considered it for a moment, wondering what his reaction would be. But after all, he _had_ already seen her naked. There wasn't anything exciting about it if he had already seen it once…

Huffing impatiently, she immerged from the clothing booth faster than anybody could've said 'change your clothes'; after all, she was used to the speed behind fashion shows and photo sessions. "What about _this _one?" Ino wanted to know through clenched teeth.

The dress she had put on was a deep mauve, her favorite color – it was a halter-dress with a neck-line that came to a plunging halt at her navel, a string underneath her breasts keeping the dress together. The hem of the dress' skirt was asymmetrical, beginning just where her rear ended flowing past her knees on the other side. She knew she was sexy as hell in it, and normally she wouldn't have worn something like that – it was enough with people thinking she was a whore for various reasons – but hard times called for dramatic measures.

If he didn't react to this, he was either gay and Temari was an undercover guy, or he _really _was made of stone, she mused.

But much to Ino's anger, Shikamaru's eyes only followed her neckline with an arched eyebrow and trailed upward again to her face. "… It's okay."

Okay? Freaking, goddamned _okay_? Ino wanted to kick him between his legs, just to get _some _reaction out of him. Here she was, looking beyond just plain _hot_ – words like _sex goddess_ was something more what she was looking for, even if '_pretty_' would've been more satisfying in this situation, and had the other guys seen her, they'd most likely have just gaped in mute _shock_, and all he could say was that it was '_okay_'?

Taking a deep breath to calm down her stiletto-clad foot, which was just _dying _to get to know his genitals better, she only glared challengingly at him. "Can you imagine me walking on the catwalk in this? I can't believe I'm actually going to be part of the Versace show," she said, and couldn't help but grin slightly in pride as she started to do a catwalk in the store, causing several shoppers to stop and stare.

(_That's how you're supposed to react, idiot!_ she wanted to scream at Shikamaru.)

"Are catwalks really allowed to have stuff like _that_?" he wondered, his eyebrow still raised as he pointedly nodded towards her cleavage.

_Bingo_. "What," she prodded with a slight purr as a triumphant smirk started to find its way onto her lips, "too sexy for the stage?"

No answer came, and then, with a sigh, Shikamaru asked; "Are you done yet?"

_What. The. Hell._

"Yes," she spat through gritted teeth, "I'm just going to go change."

Stomping into the clothing booth, she inwardly cursed him to a painful, cruel death in a bunch of variants. How could he be so _unresponsive_? She was _prettier _than Temari, goddammit!

It had all started when she and Shikamaru had met up at the shopping center to buy a present for Naruto before she and Shikamaru would leave for another infiltration in Oto; wanting to take the opportunity to buy a new dress as well, she had dragged the sighing lazy bum to the closest dress boutique.

Forgetting momentarily who it was that she was shopping with, she had eagerly shown off an all-too-revealing dress. The second she had stepped out of the clothing booth, she had immediately regretted her decision – what if he got the wrong idea? This wasn't Sakura, or the other girls. What if he thougt she was _flirting _with him, showing off sexy dresses?

But Shikamaru hadn't even reacted. He hadn't even taken the chance to look her up and down, drinking in her curves, like any other guy would have.

And being as stubborn as a mule (although Ino would've never admitted it), she had taken it as a challenge and tried on the most curve-enhancing, drool-worthy mini-dresses in the entire store.

And still, he had yet to even widen his eyes.

Changing back to her usual attire, consisting of a short black button-down tunic and a slightly too large white slipdress that was the same length of her tunic with rolled-up sleeves, minimal denim shorts and black leggings, a large silver necklace and the pair of black stilettos she had been sporting before, she sourly pushed past Shikamaru waiting for her outside, starting to put the dresses back into their original places.

"Aren't you going to by any of them?" he wondered, eyebrow still high.

"You said they weren't good-looking," Ino fumed in response.

Heaving another sigh, Shikamaru replied, "How troublesome." Pausing briefly, he proceeded; "I never said that."

Her fingers still clasped around the hanger of the purple dress, she froze. Was he actually…?

"So," she stated slowly, trying to remain casual and not let the manic grin pulling at her lips show through, "which one _should _I buy then?"

There was a tiny silence in the air that almost seemed to tear on Ino's nerves for some strange reason, as though there was an electric, yet not painful, current going through her stomach, before he answered, "The purple one."

Her façade finally began to crack, and the cheeky smile she was renowned for started to show through. "Why?"

"… Purple suits you," he merely responded, orienting his eyes away from her prying gaze. "Troublesome woman."

Ino merely landed a playful punch towards his shoulder as she walked towards the cash register, the purple dress in her hands. So he _had_ reacted, after all… only not on the outside.

Her smile came to an abrupt – and far too quick – end when she looked out of the window outside. The sight made her feel as though her heart had just sunk right through the floor towards the underground parking lot of the shopping center, and she dropped the dress to the floor as her fingers slackened with astonishment.

Because a certain pinkette and what'd look like _her_ boyfriend in the eyes of a stranger, Uchiha Sasuke, were walking past, so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't even notice the gaping blonde staring at them.

* * *

"No," she said with the dramatic incredulity like that of a three-year-old noticing that his favorite candy was out of stock.

"Yes."

"This can't –"

"It does."

"It's impossible –"

"It's not."

"_No way_."

Heaving an exasperated sigh, Sasuke instead chose to remark dryly, "We could go on for a while with this, Sakura."

Had it been just any other occasion, Sakura would have (unbeknownst to the person standing beside the gaping pink-head) suppressed a shiver, or the way it felt like her chest was about to burst with such conflicting emotions it made her almost dizzy, when he just said her _name_ – but this wasn't just any other occasion.

"_RamenLand Adventures_?" she couldn't help but exclaim for the fiftieth time since they had stepped over the threshold of the gaming store and Sasuke had shoved the PC game into her face. "Seriously? _RamenLand Adventures_?!?!"

"'The tale of a hero embarking on a journey in a world of ninjas, seducing beautiful women and defeating malicious villains, finding love, friendship, fame and most importantly, ramen, on the way'," Sasuke recounted monotonously as he read aloud from the back of the game cover.

"I can't – I don't –" Shutting her mouth in her obvious disbelief, she took a deep breath and started again; "I mean, that's just so…"

"… perfect for the moron," Sasuke finished her sentence, causing her to laugh slightly.

"Wow… anyone tell you that you're a genius, Sasuke?"

The smirk that flashed back at her in response boasted _even _more arrogance than usual. "Hn. I _think_ I may have heard that somewhere," he retorted sarcastically, but the fact that he was pleased with the compliment filtered through his voice, summoning another laugh from the pink-head. She punched him playfully on his arm, as the poor boy stifled a wince; he had forgotten just how much her _playful punches _hurt, even if it was unintentional – but he wasn't going to let it show.

"And here I thought _I _had a bought good gift. When I saw the boxers with ramen bowls on them in the store, I thought they were _perfect_ for him –"

"You bought _boxers _for the dobe," he restated skeptically as though he wished for her to prove him wrong.

Unable to contain a giggle, Sakura replied, "Well, yeah. Ever since your little laundry _incident _–" At this, Sasuke visibly scowled, causing another giggle, " – he's been short on underwear, and he keeps complaining how you steal his –"

"I. Do. Not. Steal. The. Moron's. Underwear," he hissed through clenched teeth as he regarded her extremely coolly. Sakura would've flinched and withdrawn her remark, but for some strange reason, the fact that they were _here_, messing around just as though they truly _were_ friends again, made her light-headed and cheeky.

Therefore, she only grinned playfully at him in answer, refusing to cave in to his intimidating approach. "I. Know. Sasuke," she enunciated exaggeratingly clearly in a parody of him.

Pinching the bridge of his nose with a disapproving scowl, he muttered; "… I think I'm getting a headache from this."

Laughter erupted from her lips, and she was amazed at the sound – it was so natural, so _real_… and it had been so long ago since she had last relaxed this way, and felt this…

Happy? Relieved? _Overjoyous_?

She didn't know. And she couldn't care less for the exact definition. "Either way, I know that you don't. I highly doubt that Homer Simpson briefs are your thing anyway," she grinned at him. "You're more like a boxers guy, and not the kind with cartoon characters on them."

"… You _know _the moron's underwear?" he questioned, and there was a certain sharpness in his tone; the atmosphere change made her own glee drop at once. The tension that had been devoid from their conversation had returned, and the way he was staring at her – and definitely not in an approving manner – made her wish the ground could swallow her whole.

"Um, well…" Fidgeting uncomfortably under his prying gaze, Sakura tried to look elsewhere, but it didn't matter how she tried to distract herself; even without meeting his eyes, she could still feel him piercing holes into her head

(_even though it was better than _meeting _his eyes; she'd probably be sent into a panic fit and annoy him_)

with his stare. "I've done laundry for him before, when we were living together before you came back from Oto."

The silence that fell was far from the one in the car – the tension was enough to feel almost _electrifying_, as though it was frazzling her nerves, and it truly was. The reminder of his absence – and the _reason _for it – was more than the two of them could take.

Sasuke, however, whose mind which had, amidst all of the awkwardness and memories better left untouched, drifted back to her previous statement, raised an arched eyebrow high at his realization. "… Have you been looking at my underwear?" he asked simply, and although his tone conveyed his obvious disbelief, the barely existent tint of amusement was lost to the pinkette's ears.

The blush that instantly colored Sakura's otherwise quite pale face could've rivaled Hinata's in color.

"_No_!" she half-shrieked in an extremely high-pitched voice, causing quite a few passersby to turn and stare as she increased her walking speed in her franticness, which he easily caught up with. "I mean, it's not like they're not good to look at – not that I've looked at them – I – laundry basket – you –"

If the pinkette hadn't been staring straight ahead and stuttering far worse than she had ever done in his presence, she'd have seen the amusement that was starting to leak through Sasuke's incredulous demeanor. "… _Anyway_," she pointedly said in an unsubtle attempt to change the topic, "we should start looking for Ino's present now."

Finally daring to glance sideways at him, Sakura noticed his eyebrow still raised, although he looked quite aloof now, silently asking her to elaborate.

"The test, you know?" she reminded him, relieved to have left the _extremely _uncomfortable topic – well, uncomfortable for _her_, at the very least. "I told you I was going to test you. So far, I've only been giving you lessons – but now it's for you to find a gift on your own, and I'll tell you how well you did."

"… A test," he merely repeated, and judging by his tone, Sakura knew he was taking it as a challenge. It had been exactly what she had aimed for, as she knew his constant need to compete and win whenever such an opportunity surfaced, and it'd fuel him to do his best.

"Yeah," she thusly nodded. "You have until the shopping center closes, which should be in…" She trailed off to glance at the wall clock behind him. "… another two hours."

"Where do we meet?"

"How about the stage?" she suggested. "You know, the one with the center of the shopping center on the second floor, you know, the one with the piano –"

"I know," he cut her off dryly, most likely impatient to get started on the challenge, she noted with a mental grin.

"Well… I'll see you later then," said Sakura with a tiny smile, coming to a halt, as Sasuke merely continued forward, raising one of his hands in a gesture to say goodbye without even turning his head – as though he knew that she was still looking at him – before tucking it back into his pocket.

Her emerald eyes continued to follow his back until he turned around the corner and was out of sight.

Heaving a sigh, she swerved around to go down the way they had come, only jerking back in astonishment as she came face to face with a desperate-looking woman in an all-too-tightly fitting suit. After having calmed down somewhat, she recognized her; it was Kinjo Kagura, the owner of the shopping center. She had met her previously on several occasions when she had walked in during Tsunade's meetings to deliver hospital reports.

"Kinjo-san," she began with a slight bow. "How nice to meet you ag-"

"Haruno-san!" she interjected her, panic completely unveiled in her voice. "There's an emergency, and I _must _have your help!"

* * *

Hinata was assured that she'd never be able to become happier than she was in this fleeting moment, where she was walking next to a specific blonde in Kinjo Shopping Center with a steaming paper mug with hot chai latte in it whilst the latter babbled on, filling in the silence she had been afraid of.

"- and I know we've been to Ichiraku before, but next time, instead of eating at your place, we could go out and eat there! I mean, you never eat ramen and all, and –"

She was careful with her steps as she merely nodded in encouragement with a wide smile, trying her best not to trip and fall flat onto her face. Besides the fact that the experience would be utterly humiliating, she was utterly scared of realizing that this, all of it, was only one of her many other dreams about him.

"- it's not _healthy _not eating ramen! I don't care what the bastard says, ramen is good for one's health! Right, Hinata?"

"Y-yes," she spoke up, her smile broadening at his childlike behavior. "I-it has a lot of p-protein."

"_Exactly_!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. His grin faltering just the slightest, he added somewhat anxiously, "Um, by the way… you're not going to tell Neji about this, are you?"

She shook her head fervently; Hinata had never been one to lie, but some things were better left unsaid if she didn't want a certain blonde to be beheaded before his 17th birthday. Thanking her with a grin, Naruto parted his lips to indulge in another one of his endless rants, when something suddenly caught his eye. "Isn't that Ino?" he wondered aloud, with a frown. "And Shikamaru?"

She followed his gaze; it was indeed the two of them, Ino staring straight ahead with a transfixed gaze, her expression undecipherable and grim; Shikamaru merely looked as though he thought of it all as an utterly troublesome business, which he without a doubt probably did.

Somehow, Hinata felt distressed, as though somebody had just walked in on her doing something terribly wrong – which perhaps she had been doing. She had been hoping for the impossible, hoping for somebody who already belonged to another… but she found it slightly begrudging still that Ino had chosen this exact moment to disturb her peace. She had nothing against the blonde, but she'd have liked to stay with Naruto in this dream of hers just a little bit longer…

She broke out of her trance when he suddenly whispered; "Eversince."

Her head shot up in alarm after having stared at the ground – it was unusual for Naruto to be less than eardrum-splitting, and for him to _whisper_, especially the way he did as though he seemingly was out of breath, was more than just uncharacteristic. Looking up, she saw his eyes widened in surprise as she followed his gaze…

… and her pearly orbs landed right onto the back of a certain pinkette who, much to her shock, was on the stage in the middle of the shopping center playing the grand piano situated there.

It was definitely a dream.

It was a _nightmare_.

Perhaps, she mused, it was her punishment for being so delusional.

To see him now, so captivated by her presence that he barely seemed to notice anything else, the way he looked at her as though nothing else existed in his world – it pained her beyond imagination. It felt as though somebody had just stabbed her right through the chest.

But yet, she couldn't force herself to look away. It was as though she had some sort of morbid fascination, unable to look away from the horror movie gone real before her very eyes.

Hope was a fragile thing, Hinata learned. And the heart even more so.

"She used to play it a lot, you know," he continued in that low volume that seemed to enhance a baritone note in his voice she hadn't noticed before, still unable to tear his eyes away from her, the way Hinata couldn't tear her eyes away from _him_. "After he left… it's a sad song, don't you think?"

As she listened to the excruciatingly slow notes drifting into the air in soft pianissimos, telling a story without words; to how it stuttered at times, to grow into a more powerful mezzo-forte, and then down to slow, beautiful chords that seemed to compliment each other the way two pieces of a puzzle would, yet enhance each other, creating such a perfect harmony she wished that she, too, could participate in it by playing along with the pianist, but she wouldn't have found another chord that would've fitted – and she couldn't help but think just how amazing it truly was, saying everything on her mind.

(_everything she was feeling for _him)

And how amazing the person who was conveying the message she was bearing inside was.

_Yes, _she wanted to agree, _it really is a sad song._

But her constricted throat found no words to speak as she continued to watch, rooted where she stood, as she watched the pinkette's hands continue to dance elegantly across the tangents.

* * *

Sakura loved playing the piano.

(_for more than just one reason – it was the only thing her mother had personally taught her as a child, and she loved the way _he_'d look at her, with some sort of curious interest, whenever she did play)_

She liked the sound of the promises of happily-ever-after in the songs in the major scale, and the silent cries of broken hearts in those of the minor one. She adored the picturesque, abstract reality that she painted whenever her fingers danced in harmony, and the misery and stinging pain they described when they didn't. And furthermore, she absolutely _loved_ how it all came together in one fantastic story that left its listeners breathless, even if no words had been used.

But that did _not _mean she appreciated being told to perform on stage in less than 5 minutes in one of the fanciest shopping centers of Fire Country just because its pianist had made use of its last-minute absence to go into labor.

After having being pleaded a dozen times to take the place of the

(_lucky bitch_)

missing artist, and after hearing the '_But I've heard that you're an excellent pianist and it's a great advertisement for _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ as you're famous_' speech another hundred times (as though it needed more advertisement than they already had, and as though the fangirls didn't absolutely _loathe_ her) Sakura finally caved in and, borrowing some piano sheets the artist had requested beforehand, she was now playing for the last few customers left before the shopping center was going to close its doors completely for the day, making use of both piano sheets and the songs she knew by heart.

She signalized the end of _Eversince_, one of her favorite pieces by the famed composer Yiruma, as her digits trailed to an uncertain, slow end – one that seemed more like the middle of a sentence rather than the ending of a tale.

Before she knew what she was doing, her hands had already started another familiar song she hadn't played for too long a time on their own.

_When I was young I listened to the radio, and it played my favorite songs_, the lyrics automatically recited themselves with a familiar voice

(her _voice – it had been Ino's mother's favorite song when they were children, and thus, it had become Ino's as well_)

despite the fact that she was playing an instrumental.

How it easy it had been back then. Memories flooded into her mind – propped unto the piano chair in front of the grand piano in the music room, fingers pressing down tangents uncertainly, but still with the air of somebody doing something important, as her blonde best friend listened, awestruck, at the songs she played.

(_"You're awesome, Sakura! You're like, the next Mozart!" – And they'd giggle, because they pictured Sakura in that white wig and with the stern expression as that of the man in the painting on the wall before them)_

As Sakura closed her eyes, letting her fingers steer on their own, the picture remained intact – just with some minor changes. Instead of Ino, a raven-haired, onyx-eyed boy was standing next to her, watching her every move intently, and with a carefully composed demeanor as to not show his curiosity – but still, it was _her_ voice who kept singing –

_- those were such happy days, for not so long ago, how I wonder where they've gone –_

- and _his _voice that spoke.

(_"That was…" He struggled for a word that wasn't too much of a compliment, but failed. "… good.")_

It had all been so easy. So effortless. For them to be next each other – it was like something that was a _given_. Perhaps some minor bickering, but no fighting – they didn't have to struggle to get along. She was the peacemaker between the two boys, and whenever things got too far, she'd snap – but never at _him_.

(_More often because it was Naruto who had caused it in the first place)_

Now… things were so different.

_- but they're back again, just like a long lost friend, all the songs I knew so well –_

She felt herself marveling at how they could stand next to each other, just being able to _talk _in a poor imitation of how they used to be; there was still that silence threatening to loom over them at any given second, and she still had the feeling of losing him if she as much as took the time to blink… but beyond all of that, she felt _grateful_.

Grateful that if nothing else, he tried to press down the hatred that he undoubtedly harbored inside for her still, if it only was for her best friend.

Grateful that he at least didn't regard her as though she was the very filth of the sole of his shoe, like she deserved to be treated.

Grateful that he _pretended_ as though everything was as it should be.

_- when they get to the part, where he's breaking her heart, it can really make me cry… -_

And before she knew it, tears were threatening to surface underneath her eyelids.

Sakura hated it. Hated the feeling of being so weak, so _vulnerable_, as though she could do nothing else but shed tears whenever something bad happened, but she couldn't help it.

Because every time she thought of how much she had hurt him –

(_"Tell me you love him, Sakura. Tell me you love him and that you don't want me here… and then I'll go."_

_He looked weird, she thought, in the midst of it all. So _weird, _she had never seen this face expression before, it was almost as though -)_

- how much she _deserved _to be treated like the very filth underneath his shoe –

(_"Do you even need an answer to that? You know as well as me that the one Sakura loves is me… not _you_. Never _you_."_

_And that smirk, that goddamned smug _smirk_, the one she was in love with but still not, and then the one she _really _was in love with seemed like he'd detonate at any given moment, as though his mind was screaming kill kill kill kill_ KILL -)

- it hurt.

Goddamned, freaking, fucking _hurt_.

- _just like before… it's yesterday once more… -_

Because every time she thought of it, it was as though the injury was still fresh. Always new, never healing, never closing – it wasn't a scar.

It was a freaking, eternal _wound_ she just wanted to claw out of her skin, out of her _body _and _mind_ and _soul_, and throw away, because it HURT –

(_and he kept punching him, and he kept kicking him, kept _hurting_, kept – oh my God, he was _strangling _him – stop, stop, STOP, please, Sasuke-kun, STOP -)_

- like **hell**.

- _looking back on how it was, in the years gone by –_

It was strange, though. How many good memories there were, and yet, she continued to reside in that one, last memory that changed everything.

That made him disappear.

(_The onlookers. Their mother. Their father. Their ashen-faced relatives, staring in mute shock. Oh my God, and those were… those were the people Itachi-kun had been talking about, the ones that'd change the future of the Uchiha clan, and what they were seeing was –_

"_What _is _this? Sasuke! Itachi! Stop! IMMEDIATELY!")_

Was it all she could think of now? Of all memories that hurt her the most, from the good ones to the bad ones to the mediocre ones to the boring ones…

But she kept replaying that moment, that single moment that had tortured her for several years, in her mind. Over and over and over

- _and the good times that I had –_

(_"A wise man once said… a brother should never harm a brother. Therefore, I couldn't stand to hurt my most beloved little brother…"_

"_DON'T FUCKING _BULLSHIT_ ME --!!")_

over again she'd think of **that** which made her, him, _them_, to what they were today.

- _makes today seem rather sad –_

(_"Sasuke-ch-"_

_A glare she had never seen him give to _her_, his mother, the one he loved most of everything, the one he was most afraid to lose, she was so fragile, the slightest thing would set her heart condition into a haywire state – "Even if you go down on your knees and beg me to apologize to _him_, I'd rather eat dirt.")_

But even if they hadn't managed to revive what had once been, she was grateful for every single little thing they had.

For him to still look at her – to even _smirk _at her, that smirk she had once hated

(_"How _DARE_ you speak to your mother like that? How _DARE _you defile the Uchiha name without as much as the blink of an eye?! I _ORDER_ you to bow down on your knees and beg for your mother's forgiveness!"_

"… _I won't.")_

to love.

- _so much has changed… -_

She had wanted to apologize. Of course. She was no more than a human – not a rogue criminal whose conscience was as black as _his _eyes – but in that moment, everything had been so jumbled. Such a tumult.

Such a chaos.

(_"Then I'd rather have you leave the name you could care less for behind. It's your choice, _Sasuke.")

But it wasn't an excuse. It wasn't an excuse, it shouldn't have been – he had been there for her, so many times, cured her of loneliness, let her hug him so that her pain would go away, made others regret they had ever hurt her…

And she…

(_She had collapsed. In the midst of it all, in the heat of the argument… Uchiha Mikoto, famed matriarch and the wife of the CEO of Uchiha Corp., mother of two child prodigies… had received the heart attack that'd later spiral her into a long, seemingly infinite, stay at the hospital._

"_MOM!!")_

… had merely stood there.

Stood there as his world fallen apart. Everything that had once been the pride and his life – his family, his home, his dreams, his ambitions, his beliefs and _all of it –_

Collapsed. Broken. _Gone._

Because of her. And all she could do was watch.

(_"Itachi-kun!" The scream had left her lips before she could stop herself, as she watched the man sink down and cough blood violently; his health had never been the best, and Sasuke had – Sasuke had just --)_

And pour salt into his wounds.

(_"I see that you've made your choice," he had silkily stated, staring at her with an unreadable expression. It was as though he had wanted her to prove her wrong._

_But she didn't. She only stared. Dumbly. Like before. And then, just as he was about to walk away, the person he had looked up to his entire life, the one he'd always tried to prove his own self-worth to –)_

She had failed him.

She had deceived the person she loved the most.

And betrayed him.

The worst thing?

She couldn't even say, 'I'm sorry.'

(_-- his father, oh my God, it was his _father_ speaking, please, don't say anything more, it's enough with the way you're glaring at him as though he's the worst person on Earth –_

"_To think that you did it for _her…_" And the disgust in his eyes as he looked sideways at her almost rivaled the one when he looked at Sasuke. "Well, Sasuke, I hope you got what you wanted. And may I never see your face again.")_

She would have. She would have if she hadn't been so stunned, so stupid, so _easily deceived _– because _of course_ Itachi didn't love her, he hadn't even bothered to contact her afterwards – but all she could do was _stare_.

Lather, rinse and repeat.

If she had only

(_screamed, "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry", as many times as he wanted to)_

done anything else but just slump down the wall as he hastily threw everything he owned into a couple of bags and slammed the door shut,

if she had only

(_said, "I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you" so that he'd believe her, because she _did_, she _did, _she loved him so freaking much she was about to explode, but he'd never love her back, especially not now --)_

done something. _Anything_.

They had been thirteen.

Whoever said that thirteen-year-olds were not capable of hurting as much as adults were wrong.

Because even if they were just mere children,

(_even if they had tried to be adult, pretended to be it, especially _him, _always so desperate to be better than his 18-year-old brother)_

even if the horizons of their worlds hadn't expanded to the length that the threshold of the maximal hurt they could feel would rise,

(_because the older you grow, the more cruel things you can feel, like _love_, real, painful, cruel _love, _not just _kisskissfallinlove! _like the children they were)_

it was still _their _world. Their _whole _world.

And when a thirteen-year-old feels a pain that fills up their entire world, even if it'd merely fill up just one third of an adult's, it doesn't mean it hurts _less_.

Just like a 7-year-old who loses her toy – what would she know about the pain of having unrequited feelings? For her, losing a toy is the worst thing you can go through. And when that happens, it takes up her entire world, and it feels like it couldn't have possibly hurt any less.

Just like a 13-year-old who has accidentally ruined her first love's life.

She was 17 now. 18 next year, and ready to take on the world – and maybe she was still a child in the adults' eyes, but she knew, she _knew_, that there'd never be anyone she loved as much as _him_.

Perhaps it was just high school. Hormones. A poor imitation of the teenage, _true _love they described in Twilight.

But she was pretty damn sure that it was real.

Why else would it hurt so much? Whenever she saw _them _together, whenever she thought back? Whenever she'd heard the name "Uchiha", and know that he had actually _fought _to keep his namesake as to not degrade to a nameless, unwanted person…

And why else would she feel this unbearable, heart-aching _happiness _that he at least _pretended_ to care now when they were forced to cooperate?

Why did it feel like she couldn't go on another second if he reverted to how he once was?

Maybe she was overdramatic. But she felt like a drug addict, having been in rehab too long – coming back, seeing that drug right in front of her, but unable to touch it, and when she could _pretend _that she had it again, pretend that everything was alright… she clung onto the feeling as if it was a lifeline.

Her fingers stopped moving as Sakura realized she had actually ended the song automatically, having played it one too many a time. Startled by the sudden pull back to reality, she almost jumped off the chair when she heard a not too loud, but still quite hearable, clap.

Her eyelids flipping open rapidly, she searched for the source of the sound. Surprised, she realized that the shopping center was almost completely empty.

Except for that one figure standing at the stage, looking at her with that

(_beloved, infuriating, wonderful_)

smirk that made her heart swell inside her chest so that it made it hard to breathe.

Stunned, she was unsure how she managed to get off the stage. She couldn't feel her legs.

"You still play," Sasuke said matter-of-factly as she came to a halt just in front of him, jade eyes wide.

"… Yeah," replied Sakura, her voice sounding bizarre even to her own ears; she realized why when a warm droplet slid down her cheek. "Yeah, I do."

She swiftly brushed it off with the back of her hand in what she hoped was a discreet manner, but unfortunately, Sasuke's eyes were glued to the movement of her hand, slowly rolling upwards to meet her orbs as his own were narrowed. Dread surfaced in her insides as he opened his lips –

"Uchiha-san! Uchiha-_san_!"

The (un)timely interruption made her exhale in relief as Sasuke looked even further annoyed; Konji Kagura bounded over, looking as though she'd faint at any given second. "Uchiha-san!" she exclaimed in what was almost a (slightly disturbing) moan. "Is… is that really you?!"

"… Yes," he responded blankly, but Sakura found the hint of slight caution in his voice as she stifled a giggle. He drew back slowly, as though he was afraid she'd attack him if she noticed that he was edging away from her.

"Oh my _God_! You are _the_ Uchiha Sasuke!" the 45-year-old squealed in a way not too different from _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s groupies (and wannabe-groupies, and wannabe-wannabe-groupies, and…). "Could you – can you – would you _please _perform here sometime again?! We'd love to have you over! It doesn't matter if it's _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ or just you, Uchiha-san, it'd be perfect either way!"

Apparently, the fact that Sasuke was inching farther and farther away was no indication, but Sakura thought it wasn't a wonder that she hadn't noticed; her eyes – which almost _sparkled_ with enthusiasm – drank in Sasuke's features, a slow blush treading onto her cheeks.

She was torn between disgust and amusement. Deciding to settle for the latter, a giggle escaped her.

Kagura still paid her no heed, but Sasuke gave her a warning glare that told her not to mock him. In response, she uttered another giggle. He chose to ignore her. "If you've any questions regarding performing, you must speak to my manager. I'm afraid I've no power whatsoever to decide on my own."

"But surely you must – but then, you could…" Trailing off, she looked as nervous as a schoolgirl about to confess as she batted her eyelashes at him. "Perhaps you could… perform for _me_ only…?"

If Sasuke hadn't been Sasuke, he'd have looked downright scared. (_With good reason, _Sakura mused.) Instead, a grimace found its way onto his (_pretty, beautiful, godlike) _face. "… I'm sorry, but we're in a _hurry_," he replied, emphasizing the last word.

"But –"

"If there's anything else, call this number," he quickly added, shoving a card into her hands and pulling Sakura's arm, he quickly withdrew, walking straight ahead until they came to a stop far enough away from the location; it was what was called the 'Square of the Wise'. Sakura recognized it very well – after all, she had spent countless afternoons here in the past.

The Square of the Wise was a simple, circular space in the far corner of the second level of the shopping center, but in Sakura's opinion, a breathtaking piece of architecture. The ceiling was high, supported by large pillars of spotless, white marble; the floor, too, was made of smooth marble, but in the same color of black as Sasuke's eyes. The windows on the ceiling donned the place a perfect light setting to match; small cafés were spread here and there with plants, fountains, vine-and-flower-clad arches, and bookstores with large glass windows from which you could look down at the 'streets' below had miraculously fit in the minimum space between all the cafés.

It looked and smelled like something out of a dream; a combination of an indoor paradise and a typical Mediterranean street.

However, the very 'square' had a huge fountain in the middle, surrounded by four perfectly comfortable sofas on each side, and on the ground around the fountain was a perfect circle, all with different quotes of 'wise men' (and women, also) carved into the ground in elegant handwriting that still remained readable.

It was on one of these sofas that Sakura now seated herself, on the verge of tears once more.

But for a completely different reason.

"Did you see the look on her face?" she laughed as she clutched her stomach. "She looked like a little kid who finally got her candy! And oh my God, she was eyeing the front of your pants… I can't believe it! Konji Kagura, 45-year-old millionaire wife, just _sized you up_!"

An extremely intimidating scowl became his response. "Shut up, Sakura."

"Did you _really _give her your number? I can just imagine her calling you in the middle of the night… '_oh, Sasuke_'," she moaned as she held her hand to her ear in a mock imitation of a phone, '_'kiss me… say my name… oh, _Sasuke, _you're so _dirty –"

"Shut up," he snarled again, although his cheeks did heat up a bit. "That was Kakashi's number." After all, he _was_ a teenager.

(_and hearing a girl moan his name did affect most teenage boys, even if said girl was just making fun of him while doing it)_

"So." Seating her hands in her lap, feeling almost overly brisk – she felt much more at ease after having joked around for a little bit

(_and she wondered, did she get that habit from _him_? Clowning around to hide one's insecurities? And then her heart stung, and she decided not think of the blonde, those fake smiles were plastered into her mind whether she wanted to or not)_

and smiled. "Let's see you if you pass!"

Smirking with the arrogance that only he could possess (_and perhaps Neji as well, she mused_), he threw a shopping bag gently into her lap. Pulling out the object curiously, she raised an eyebrow in deepened curiosity

(_in an attempt to mask the pain inside that was flaring like a tiny, but steady flame against her chest)_

as she revealed a shoebox. She opened it carefully, and whistled. "Impressive. Very impressive."

"… Hn," he threw back in response, but she could tell from his boastful posture that he was thinking, '_Tell me something I don't know.'_

Resisting the urge to stick out her tongue at him, Sakura instead chose to roll her eyes as she took out one shoe. It was a high-heeled platform sandal; soft leather made of sky-blue material like Ino's eyes, creating a strappy overlapping vamp, open arches and a slingback strap at the heel. The wedge at the sole of the shoe seemed to be made out of cork, with a slightly artistic pattern randomly drafted across it in pale, but quite visible, colors.

"Nice," she commented, swiveling the shoe in her hands, unable to hold back the fact that she _was_ utterly impressed. "It'll compliment her eyes, its heel is high but it looks – and seems – comfortable. The size looks like it'll fit her perfectly. Extremely cool, but also elegant. And Pucci is one of Ino's favorite brands when it comes to shoes, too."

"Aa," he replied in what seemed like a rather self-satisfied tone.

"Looks like you'll have your Cinderella eating from the palm of your hand, Prince Charming," she joked, barely able to push the injured tone back. Then, with a more mischievous pitch, she added; "You're pretty good at this, you know. Ever consider joining Sai in the gay stylist in denial business?"

Sasuke glared pointedly at her in response, flopping down next to her on the sofa as he sullenly said, "There's another thing in there."

In reaction to her surprise, he nodded in direction of the shopping bag. She reached inside, still slightly astonished, to reveal _another _item – this one properly packaged. "Wow. You know, I only asked for _one _present, but this is –"

"That one's for you," he interrupted her, and although his face expression remained unchanged, his words were slightly too rushed to seem casual. "For testing purposes," he added, even faster than before.

Sakura couldn't push back the smile on her lips as she felt as though she was basked in warmth. "… For testing purposes," she repeated, as though to confirm his statement, although it was easy to tell it definitely was not the case.

Her smile faltered, however, as she unwrapped the little rectangular object, and revealed a Swarovski case. "This…," she said hoarsely as she turned towards him, half-expecting him to laugh in her face and scream, 'Got'cha!' or turn into a purple octopus just to prove that it was a dream.

However, Sasuke's gaze was steadily fixed at the ground, as though he was trying to calculate the amount of patterns available for one's eyesight in the marble.

_Swarovski?_ she mentally screamed, not knowing if she was joyous or appalled. Or both. _But that's more expensive than Pucci! What if he got me something like – like a ring? No, wait, that's not Sasuke. But then again, he probably doesn't know the meaning of rings, he probably only sees it as jewelry. No, he's not that stupid. What if it really _is _a ring? What am I going to do? If I don't wear it, he'll be mad. If I wear it, Ino will ask. But what if –_

Her thoughts came to a halt as her breath hitched at the sight of the box's contents.

A pair of perfectly beautiful earrings were inside; two silver strings (or could it be white gold?) dangled from each earring, and at the end of each string was a petite ball in a slightly funny shape – making them look like _cherries_ – in light amethyst.

"You used to wear strawberry ones," he muttered, staring holes in the ground as though daring it to laugh.

Sakura smiled softly at the memory. "Yeah." How could she forget? After having made her cry – she really _had_ been a crybaby back then – and become utmost irritable due to her emotional outburst, he felt a little guilty, and had with the help of his weekly allowance (which was more than Naruto's and Sakura's combined) bought a pair of astonishingly fetching strawberry earrings.

And she had worn them almost every day since he had bought them.

(_And she had been fiercely protective – the word _possessive _had not been associated with the context ever since the rumor of Naruto's arm being broken – once when Ami had tried to take them from her, she had to pay dearly for hair that ended just above her ear at one side, and chest-length purple strands at another)_

"You lost them." He paused, waiting for an answer to his question – had there been a Babelfish that allowed Sasukenese to be an official language, it'd most likely have translated it to a more understandable, 'I rarely see you wearing them nowadays. Where did they go?'

But Sakura hadn't lost them. They were just tucked in amongst dozens of other things reminding her of _him_, of _them_, of the past she was dead sure they had left behind forever; but she was at a loss for words as all she could was stare fondly at the earrings she was toying with in her hands, as Sasuke's interest for the floor seemed to increase with the pregnant silence.

After having shifted uncomfortably – albeit as discreetly as possible – from one foot to another a total of twelve times, Sakura finally broke the tension. "Thanks," she said, and even though the word was nothing more than a murmur – barely able to be registered as more than a whisper – it was genuine, sincere, and furthermore – _happy_.

He couldn't have restrained the smirk working its way onto his face had even Naruto decided to barge in on this moment.

"Hn."

The familiarity of the gesture settled in as Sakura's jade orbs swam over with tears, making her vision wobbly and unfocused as she blatantly stared at the ground as Sasuke had before. How could he? How could he do things like this, after everything she had said and done? And everything she _hadn't_? Hadn't he vowed to never –

(_"Never show your face in front of me again.")_

One salty droplet escaped her eye (much to her chagrin) and landed onto her lip as she sniffled. And then froze, as Sasuke, who had apparently recognized what she was doing, merely exhaled somewhat impatiently.

"I-I'm sorry," she choked, her words coming out into a rush. "I – I just – I…" Struggling to compose herself as he stared bizarrely at her, silently demanding an answer to, put quite mildly, what the hell she was up to, Sakura pressed on, "… Why?"

"… Because I thought you'd like them?" One of his ebony eyebrows traveled towards his forehead, indicating that he now thought it was wrong of him to do such. Realizing only a minute too late what he had said, he quickly tore himself away from her prying gaze and added swiftly, "For testing purposes, that is."

Sakura couldn't help but feel her lips twitch slightly at the last statement, but she was still overwhelmed.

(_"Never talk to me again."_)

It had been not more than three weeks, at most.

Three weeks. And it had changed her life completely.

It was strange how just being able to _talk _to him, to be able to sit next to him in this abandoned shopping center with the cherry earrings clutched in the palm of her left hand, made it feel as though her throat was about to lodge, and she could barely breathe. She didn't know if it was a good or bad thing – there were too many emotions at once.

Two of them more distinguishable than the others.

One was crystal clear. Guilt. Ebony, penetrating _guilt _eating her alive. Even in this moment, she couldn't help but be her own worst killjoy as she thought of the betrayal she currently was doing against the two people who had been with her through it all.

The other was just as apparent, and she was fearing it was getting more transparent by the minute.

But she couldn't, _wouldn't_, even voice it in her thoughts. Perhaps, if she didn't acknowledge it…

Sakura swallowed. "It's not that I _don't _like them," she managed to breathe, and she couldn't tell if her volume had lowered to a whisper because of her lack of oxygen, or the fact that his obsidian eyes were once again peering into hers with an intensity that made her conscious swim. "B-but…"

"But?" he inquired further, now slightly annoyed as the beginning of a frown decided to form onto his face.

"But," she said, taking a deep breath, but failing to exhale properly as she was painfully aware of the Uchiha's unfaltering stare that made her heartbeat stutter more than her next words, "y-you… _hate_ me."

For the briefest of seconds, she could swear something flickered in his eyes.

She couldn't tell what it was. The fact scared her beyond belief, even more than it did that she had actually voiced her thoughts, her worst fear aloud – the one that had been plaguing her since the beginning of these 'boyfriend lessons'… did she really want it confirmed? Was she really that much of a masochist?

Then, slowly, still with that undecipherable edge in his voice – she couldn't even tell if it was good or bad, only that it made his eyes even more intense still, "… I don't _hate_ you, Sakura."

The statement almost seemed to take himself by surprise as much as it did her. She registered something quite akin to astonishment flaring across his onyx orbs, but she was too absorbed in her own jumbled emotional mixture and thoughts to pay attention to him, even if she was digging desperately for details so that she could analyze his behavior later – an obsessive habit she always did when she felt insecure – and then, stronger than the two emotions before, came something else that took so much control of herself, and of her own body, that she could barely feel anything else – almost as though she had floated out of her own mind and was watching what she was doing, no feelings attached, and still this wonderful, but yet almost painful

(_she was definitely a masochist, she mused)_

heartbeat that made her pulse race. And it felt, for the first time in years, as though she could feel her heart _beating_, not even _hurting_.

Well, it did, just the slightest. But only the _slightest._

_(But she was a masochist, after all)_

And before she could even tell what she was doing, she had opened up her arms and enveloped him in a hug that brought her crashing to the muscular frame of his body; Sakura could feel him freeze up against her, and she was almost positive his breath had hitched – even though it most probably was just imagination on her part – and as she took a deep breath, allowing her lungs the oxygen they had been screaming for, his familiar scent came crashing back into her nostrils with the same force of a tsunami wave.

To say that it didn't faze her would've been a blatant lie. But she only exhaled shakily against the base of his throat (_and was that his pulse, or her own?)_ as she waited for him to shove her off.

But instead of doing anything, Sasuke only sighed and relaxed, only tensing the slightest whenever she breathed out against his skin.

He wasn't hugging her back. He wasn't even bothering to move an inch, and he wasn't even patting her back reassuringly with the awkwardness that she was positive any other normal male would've done, had their ex-best friend just launched herself at them after having found out that he didn't hate her.

But it was okay. Because Uchiha Sasuke was no ordinary male, and neither was she, Haruno Sakura, an ordinary female. She was far too used to his reactions, or lack thereof, to make notice of it – except the wonderful feeling in her chest about to burst that _he_ was back.

Her Sasuke, _the_ Sasuke she had grown up with, become best friends with, shared tomato shakes (even if they were gross, and he kept saying they were nutritious) with and slept with (not in the dirty sense of the word, they had only been kids for God's sake) in front of the TV at her house.

And there was a nagging notion in the back of her mind, dully reminding her that he _wasn't _hers. Neither was she _his_.

But in the moment, in the stillness of the abandoned shopping center when all she could hear was the clatter of occasional footsteps of different store staff members in the distance, and his breath ghosting her hair and hers warming his neck (which had been undoubtedly icy prior to her snuggling against it), her arms tightly craned around either side of his head, all she could do was marvel at the miraculous wonder of it all, and wondering if they could stay there forever.

Because the last thing she wanted to do was to count the minutes until the world stopped spinning on its axis and the sky came crashing down.

* * *

"You called for me?"

Tsunade jumped slightly as she noticed the silver-haired man who had, with extreme discreetness, managed to position himself against the wall next to the entrance of her office. Smirking, she motioned for him to come closer and gestured at him to sit down as she pulled out a bottle of sake from her desk drawer.

Kakashi arched an eyebrow in amusement. "I thought Shizune-san had confiscated those."

Shrugging, she deadpanned; "I bought it especially for this occasion."

"Why, I feel honored, Hokage-sama, but the boys will be at my throat if I show up at band practice today drunk."

"Who said it was for _you_?" she grumbled with a roll of her amber eyes as he chuckled. "Well?"

"Well what?" he asked blankly, knowing very well what she wanted to know; but Kakashi had always been a sadist, and he loved angering people.

"You know what I mean," she snarled, eyes narrowing in impatience. Sleep deprivation could make even the kindest souls rude. Not that Tsunade had ever been a kind soul to begin with. "Well, as in _well_, how're the boys developing?"

Sucking in breath to let it out in an exaggeratedly exasperated sigh, Kakashi answered, "_Well_, I'd have to say that they've as much hormones as brats fresh out of kindergarten – nothing a healthy dose of _Icha Icha_ wouldn't cure, of course – but other than that, I guess… they're doing just fine."

A pause followed that indicated that he should continue, and he decided to oblige. "Neji has… become more open, if you'd call it that. Or perhaps more _human _would be more correct. If I'm not mistaken, I'd think Kiba has something to do with it…"

"Aah," she exhaled sharply. "Inuzuka."

"Yes." Kakashi paused, and then; "His feelings for Hyuuga Hinata are turning into a slight problem, especially as Naruto seems to have gotten the idea that Hinata are returning his feelings also, completely oblivious to the fact that the one she has feelings for is _him_."

"Naruto…" Tsunade let out a heavy sigh as she slapped her forehead. "Trust him to make things more complicated."

Although Kakashi's lips couldn't be seen underneath his white surgical mask, his grey eyes crinkled in amusement. "Aa."

"And the girls?"

"Well, Sakura and Ino seem to be more aware of their situation, although I'm not sure if Ino has noticed anything besides getting the tiny notion of something going on between Sasuke and Sakura. I'm sure that her insecurities would've kicked in by now otherwise and made this a lot harder than planned."

"As long as they don't break up the group, they're fine," Tsunade barked. "Most importantly – how are _they _doing?"

Kakashi didn't even have to think to know who she was speaking of. Or rather, which _ones _she was speaking of. "Sasuke seem to experience some mild guilt, of what I could see in homeroom today. Naruto…" He trailed off. "I'm not sure. I think he's struggling against two wants – seeing everybody else being happy, or being the only one who is happy."

"… This wasn't how things were supposed to go," Tsunade sighed again, annoyance tinting her voice as she massaged her temples with one hand, and lifting the bottle of sake to her lips with another.

"I know."

Her gaze sharpened as she glared ruefully at him. "You must stop the fighting. At once. Before things get worse – or worse, before the media gets to know _anything _about the problems in _Konoha's Golden Leaf_."

"And how," he asked slowly, "do you suggest I would do that?"

"I don't know," she threw back solemnly, and there was a tone of bitterness in her voice. "But if things continue like this, it'll be like _that_ all over again. We'll play right into the hands of that fucking _snake_, and this time, we won't have the slightest guarantee that Sasuke will be coming back."

Silence. Then, "… Aa."

"The elders on the council are watching him, by the way."

"I know."

"If he wants to get back into the Uchiha clan… he better not screw things up with the band."

"… I know."

"Stop saying the same thing all the time, goddammit!" Tsunade exploded as the hint of a mischievous grin appeared in the silver-haired man's gray eyes. Composing herself slightly, she proceeded; "Any news on the movement in Oto?"

"What I can tell judging by Shikamaru's report he handed in this afternoon, they won't tell him much."

She laughed – but it was dry, humorless. Almost hollow. "Still so distrusting, that snake. It's like him to take too many precautions. Anything else?"

"They're going to make their move. Soon." Something akin to glumness flashed across Kakashi's eyes.

"The question is just _how _soon…," murmured Tsunade as she interlaced her fingers, steadying her elbows on her desk and then placing her chin on the backs of her hands. "It's going to tear them apart."

A silence fell, during which neither of them spoke. Then; "It's sad, you know. Things are finally falling back into place with my idiot apprentice and the idiot Uchiha … and already, the happy days are coming to an end."

"… I know," Kakashi responded, and raised his hand in a playful salute as he exited her office, promptly dodging the heavy medical textbook aimed at his head.

* * *

She was gasping for air.

Ino felt as though she was a fish out of water, or as though somebody had just punctuated her lungs, as her high-heels echoed against the floor of the shopping center as she ran. She wasn't sure if Shikamaru was following her; judging by his personality, the way she had choked 'leave me alone' when he had cautiously called her name, he was not going to, either.

It was fine by her.

The tears leaked freely from her eyes, smudging the makeup she so carefully kept intact no matter the circumstances; you never knew when paparazzi was having a boring day and decided to corner you, taking horrendous pictures.

But right now, she couldn't care less about the paparazzi.

She missed the 'staff only' text in bold, red letters as she rushed towards one of the lesser known exits of Konji. The smaller the exit, the smaller the crowd.

And the less people would see Yamanaka Ino, renowned party queen for her beautiful smile that she always wore on all pictures, the _girlfriend_ of teenage heartthrob and lead singer of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ Uchiha Sasuke, cry her heart out.

The picture was burned into her mind. The pinkette, the very epitome of all of her insecurities put together – everything she lacked, everything she was afraid people would dislike about her because she didn't possess those traits, those _abilities_ – and her _best friend_, throw her arms around her _boyfriend_.

Her boyfriend.

_Her_ boyfriend.

Her _boyfriend_.

(_Are you sure that he is that? _a nagging voice that sounded like **that woman**'s remarked smugly, but she screamed at it to shut up.)

And then _his _reaction.

His widened eyes.

The fact that he was completely frozen.

And then, he relaxed.

It could've been completely natural. Ino had hugged a lot of male friends, and she was definitely not a possessive girlfriend who refused to keep Sasuke on a leash and not let him near other girls

(_just not her, God, anybody but _her_, even Karin is fine but please please PLEASE _not _**HER**__, she's my sister, she's my best friend, she's the one I've always supported and the one who's always supported me, our insecurities and our strengths are each other, why her, why __**HER **__Sasuke-kun, anybody but __**HER**__)_

but this was different.

His eyes… _they _were different.

It was something she had never seen before. Or rather, she _had_ seen it before – most people had – but not in a long time.

It was the way his eyes became dull, not as though he was bored or _boring_

(_not that Uchiha Sasuke could _ever_ becoming boring, no matter how much he lacked in the skill of conversing)_

but rather as though the sharp edge to them disappeared. The edge that _never_ faded away – it'd falter slightly when he looked at Naruto, but not more than that – just seemed to be completely torn to shreds the second she had enveloped him in that hug.

Perhaps it had been a good thing, she tried to convince herself to no avail as she continued to run down the corridor, towards the exit, the exit of it all –

(_please let it be a nightmare please let it be a nightmare PLEASE)_

- the part of him that a lot of girls find enticing – she one amongst them – the part that made him what Naruto called 'prissy' and the others 'aloof', the sharp pointed part that'd prick others if you got too close, disappeared because they were close _friends _again. Nothing more.

But there was something, _something_

(_something soft and slightly sad and angry and hopeful and happy and everything at once but still so unreadable)_

in his eyes when he had uttered those words,

(_"I don't hate you, Sakura.")_

that a friend should not have in his eyes.

That a friend should not _feel _for another friend.

_No, no, no, _she tried to yell at herself mentally as she almost scared the wits out of the poor janitor as he walked out of the lift doors as the angered blonde, with black, smudgy streaks running down her face like badly tattooed waterfalls, brushed past him; _don't be paranoid, Ino. Don't doubt her. Don't doubt _him. _This is the people you care the most about._

_This is the people who're the very essence of your life. Those who keep you alive at night when you feel like there's nothing else to hold onto besides just _you.

So why did it feel as though the two people most precious to her had just betrayed her?

Loud sobs escaped her as she hit the '1' button with more force than needed. The doors still did not close, and a worker who had intended to take the lift quickly changed her exit route when she saw the blonde, still trying to inhale oxygen despite the fact that she was sobbing so violently that she was about to go dizzy.

**_Why did you lie? _**she wanted to ask _him,_ his voice repeating itself in her mind.

_("I've… plans.")_

**_If there's nothing to hide, why are you lying?_**

After having hit the 1 button repeatedly and let out a frustrated sound that was something between a growl and a shriek, she saw the 'Staff Only' sign and 'Insert Card'.

Wailing as loudly as a baby, but feeling grateful that she was so numb she couldn't even feel the shame for doing so creep onto her – which it'd most likely do later – she slid down against the cold wall of the elevator.

_Trust me, _Sakura's 12-year-old voice had whispered to her when she had felt the loneliest during her parents' divorce, _even if they leave you – which they won't – I never will. I'll never betray you, Ino. Trust me._

She wanted to. She really wanted to.

But in this moment, where all of her insecurities came crashing onto her like tsunami waves, and all she could do was stand and watch, she couldn't summon the slightest trust – or comfort – at all.

_But you said you didn't love him anymore, _the blonde wanted to scream at the person who wasn't there. _You said it was okay for me to love him. You said it was okay._

_You told me to trust you._

"I told you it was a bad idea," a familiar voice said dryly, and looking up with an audible gasp as she tried to breathe, she thought for a fleeting moment it was _him_.

But as she looked up, she was facing a pair of uncharacteristically chilly azure orbs, and the grim face of another blonde.

She couldn't reply. She was inhaling and exhaling rapidly, fighting not to choke, as he threw a small, unopened package of tissues next to her hand. Ino was too numb to even think of reaching for them.

"They didn't hear you. Or see you."

_SHUT UP, _she wanted to yell. _Shut up shut up shut up shut up GET AWAY –_

She didn't know who she wanted to scream at. Who she wanted to hit, to _damage_, to make her feel even one hundredth of what she felt right now –

_Trust me, _two voices said at once, and she knew who they were.

The fact that they were in synchronization even in her _mind _made her breathing even harder as she tried to take deep breaths to gulp in the air that burned her parched throat. A dull ache had begun in the back of her head.

"I told you, didn't I? I warned you in the beginning. This has never been a good idea. 'Boyfriend lessons'… you were messing with fate, Ino."

_I know. I KNOW! _she screamed inwardly. _I just – I just wanted to – I just wished –_

_**That what, **_that _woman_'s voice whispered again cruelly, _**that you could trust them to not hurt you?**_

"So…," he drawled, and she could hear that despite his cruel demeanor, despite the fact that he was pouring salt into wounds and pressing the knife deeper into her back, he was _hurt_. Just as much as she was.

But that didn't make things better.

"… are you happy now, Ino?"

* * *

I'm so sorry for all the drama and lack of humor, but I hope you guys know I did my best. It's hard to describe how it feels to let down someone who was the most important to you, and how it feels to have the most important person to you to let you down. I tried to do it without sounding like a soap opera character monologue, but it's hard...

Hmm, by the way, some random info about the chapter:

- The "Square of the Wise" was a crossover between an existent place in Taipei 101 and the streets of Nice. I really wish such a place existed, though.  
- I love describing outfits WAY too much.  
- Right now, in the fic, it's October 11th (Thursday), and the next chapter will take place on Naruto's birthday, October 14th (Sunday).  
- Kiba wasn't featured much in this chapter, but he'll be in the next.  
- Yes, Kakashi was appointed as their manager by Tsunade to keep an eye on the boys and because, despite his sadistic habits, he's the most suitable mentor for the group.  
- Fashion blogs and rain inspire me. Cross your fingers for the rain to pour if you want a new chapter (and also so I don't have to go through the torture my sadistic teacher calls P.E. I may LOOK graceful, but I'm as graceful as Juugo would be drunk and in high-heels).

And oh, my new heels KILL. MY. FEET.

(But my legs look oh-so-long-and-pretty in them. Keep ogling, boys.)

Anyway. I want you guys to know that your reviews really keep me motivated. Every time I read a new review, be it a three-word-review or one that seems to take up the whole screen, I feel like, "Wow, you really want to keep reading? Like really, REALLY? I should really keep writing, then."

And oh, by the way, I know that Sasuke's and Sakura's past don't make much sense. It's not supposed to. Yet. Keep rereading and you'll understand half of it, if you don't already do. I've already revealed the most IMPORTANT things, but there're a FEW important details that have yet to be revealed.

By the way, does anybody care to elaborate WHY they think Ino is selfish? I mean, I've heard that a lot of times, but I'm still curious. She DID ask for Sakura's permission before she dated Sasuke, and she asked her IF she wanted to do this whole boyfriend test because she's got this freaky idea that somehow Sasuke and Sakura get along (but don't talk) because they all hang out together. She doesn't know Sakura is still in love with him, and keeps thinking that she's just being paranoid and that Sakura is in love with Naruto. She has major insecurity issues, but she has never been a bad friend -- she's just hugely insensitive. Ino is the sort of type that when things go wrong in her life, she's unable to notice how other people feel unless they tell her.

And she JUST got (sort of) betrayed by the two most important people in her life.

Anyone care to explain?? I really want to know!!

And PLEASE KEEP REVIEWING. MELUVS YOUR REVIEWS.


	12. o11: f s o s

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, nor do I own "F.S.O.S" by The Exies.**

**Current Date in the Chapter: **October 14th (Naruto's birthday)

**EDIT: Many thanks to rebellious-and-ditzy-bookworm whose review reminded me of the flashback I forgot to add!**

* * *

I remember the first time I met Ino.

(_"Oh… so _you_'re the Forehead Girl, huh?")_

Petite, blonde, blue-eyed and exceedingly _pretty_—but more prominent than all of that, confident. Strong. _Perfect._

_(Everything I wasn't; the difference between us were like night and day, the way she was standing there with her hands on her hips, and me, on the ground, sobbing with swollen green eyes and dirtied pink hair)_

To this day, I'm still grateful to what she did. Perhaps it was just a petty matter to her—talking to a reject—but to me, it changed my world.

(_"I'm Yamanaka Ino! What's your name?")_

I began idolizing her. She was everything I wanted to be and had everything I wanted to have—I'd imitate the way she talked, the way she dressed—

(_"Ha… Haruno… S-Sakura…")_

-but still, it didn't change a thing. Around her, I'd still be inferior, still insecure; it was funny how Ino could make me feel strong and ready to take on the world, and yet at the same time no different from the girl who used to wish she was invisible.

(_"Here!" A red ribbon swaying in the wind. A cheeky grin. A pair of stunned green eyes.)_

It was different when _he_ came into my life, and for that, I was happy—around him, I'd never have to pretend, to force myself to be someone I wasn't. I didn't have to be _Ino_ for him; he accepted me the way I was.

(_"But… my forehead…")_

Life was perfect back then. I balanced my two worlds perfectly—it was like Yin and Yang, somehow; so different, yet the same thing.

(_"They tease you because you're always hiding your forehead. It's a bit large, but you're cute, Sakura!")_

Never did I imagine that both would come crashing down on my head—along with this blind idolization of mine—when I tried to conjoint them, and opened them to one thing I could've lived without knowing.

(_"Let's be friends!")_

The truth.

* * *

**o11.**

"_Wow_," was all Sakura could breathe as she came to an abrupt halt in front of the gates of Konoha Grand Hotel, causing a few (lucky) fangirls behind her snort in exasperation and impatience, but she paid them no heed.

'Wow' was the understatement of what she was feeling. She had heard about Konoha Grand Hotel before, but _this_…

Her eyes drank in the sight she was sure she'd most likely not see any time soon again. The immeasurable amount of roses in shades from pale ivory to rich mauve, for some strange reason still abloom; the glass bridge her feet were walking on as they carried her towards the building; the fountains…

The building itself was no disappointment, either. A masterpiece made by one of the greatest architects in Japan, it boasted as luxurious an exterior as an interior, with a crossover of Greek, Italian and Asian architecture styles and an excellent view of the Konoha river.

It wasn't that Sakura was _poor_. Both of her parents had been quite successful with their careers, but none of them had been rich _enough _to even afford a dinner at Konoha Grand Hotel; it probably exceeded their yearly rent by far. It was a place for people like the Uchihas or Hyuugas – and even though Sakura wasn't exactly kept in the dark about the success of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_, the fact that they were able to host Naruto's birthday party in there was just…

Her cheeks were aflame as she entered the lobby, her high-heels clattering against the smooth marble floor. How could she have bought _boxers _to Naruto's birthday?

Half-tempted to just spin around and run out of the marvelous place (which she apparently wasn't alone about admiring; one of Kiba's temporary 'girlfriends' was squealing as she showed her invitation to one of the guards), she hesitated.

She could fake a cold. Yes, the sudden weather change from Konoha's ever-so-hot summers to its breezy falls was a constant reason for absent students at The Academy; but then, things would be unexplained if she attended the school, perfectly fine, the day afterwards.

A stomach ache. A headache. Nausea. Dizziness.

There were endless possibilities. There was quite the crowd waiting to get inside, and if she discreetly sneaked away…

"Sakura!"

_Damn._

Spinning around, she watched as Kiba made his way through the crowd, waving enthusiastically at her as several fangirls sighed and batted their eyelashes, blushing when he grinned back.

"Kib -," she began greeting him when he had enveloped her into a hug that almost caused her to topple over right into his chest. "What the –"

"Sakura, _babe_," he exclaimed as he let go of his choking hold and eyed her wolfishly up and down, his eyes lingering just a bit too long on her cleavage as she felt her cheeks burn. "You're looking _mighty _fine tonight. Maybe you'd like a _personal _after-party afterwards, hmm?"

"Are you drunk already?" she chided, blatantly ignoring the innuendo, although her cheeks heated up another notch; the pinkette's eyes traveled to the glass of gold-glimmering champagne in his hand. As if to prove the point, he gulped down a mouthful unceremoniously.

"Just tellin' the truth. Man, if you weren't Naruto's girlfriend…"

"… I'd murder you on the spot for looking at me like that," Sakura calmly ended his sentence, the insinuation of a cheeky grin appearing on her lips. "I don't care if fangirls have gone to your head, but to me, you're still the guy who rolled around in the mud with Naruto because he stole your last cookie."

Kiba faked a wince. "Damn, you really know how to bruise a guy's ego. And I've heard girls think that two guys mud-wrestling is hot."

"Not when you're seven and one of them has fleas and the other one is Naruto."

"Hey! I didn't have fleas!" he protested with mock hurt.

"Yeah, and my hair is blue." She rolled her eyes, watching as he exchanged his now empty champagne glass for a new one as the flushing waitress came out into the lobby obviously just to entertain the (_she had to admit reluctantly_) quite good-looking Kiba. "Is it really okay that you've so many of these?"

Sakura nodded in the direction of his glass, but without even looking, Kiba knew what she meant. He shrugged, carelessly – as though getting shamelessly wasted at one of the most fancy hotels in Japan on one of his closest friends' formal birthday parties was no big deal, especially with the paparazzi watching.

"Whatever. It's just champagne, anyway – wait until the _real _party starts. I still can't get that we got an _open bar_, you know – they all know we're minors! But what the heck, we _are_ celebrities…"

She nodded absent-mindedly as she let his random rant continue, her eyes carefully scanning his face. Albeit Sakura and Kiba had never been close as children, they had spent quite some time together ever since _Konoha's Golden Leaf _was founded, and they had even been on a casual date once or twice that had never gone beyond friendly hugs.

But even somebody who didn't know Kiba as much as she did would probably notice something _bizarre _about his entire behavior – the fact that his posture was so rigid when it usually was so sloppy, so _careless_, his unnaturally wide grin, his forced laugh…

_Takes one to know one, _a voice remarked dryly in the back of her mind that Sakura pointedly ignored.

"Kiba…," she began, but he must've sensed the tone change in her voice as he swiftly cut across her with; "Hey, it isn't just the alcohol, though. You _do _look great tonight."

And so Sakura knew. Or else she wouldn't have spent hours preparing in front of the mirror.

People who had seen her prior to the Watanabe advertisement wouldn't even have been able to recognize her – she was a wonder in her pale metallic green halter-neck cocktail dress, which, thanks to the ruched bodice, gave an illusion of an admirable bust size. Her chest-length roseate hair had been parted sideways so that her long bangs would almost poke her in the left eye; the other part was put behind her ear with the help of two gold, thin hairclips as the rest of her strands had been gathered into a soft, slightly messy bun, put together with the help of a lot of hair sticks.

Heck, she had even cared for her _shoes _– Sakura was a faithful sneaker-bearer, but for the occasion, she had picked a pair of black, strappy leather Ralph Lauren sandals with an open toe; with its not too high but high enough heel, and elegant skinny leather straps, it looked more elegant (and pricey) than any other pair of footwear that she had ever owned.

"Thanks," she therefore smiled at him. Then, she added; "By the way, where's Hinata?"

It had been meant as nothing more than an innocent question, but Kiba's sudden interest in a bypassing brunette's curves as well as his champagne said everything she needed to know. "Kiba…," Sakura added in a more warning tone.

"What? Oh, sorry," he laughed (_unnaturally_). "Yeah, about that… … with Neji having uncorked his ass, it's like he doesn't have anything better to do than watching out for potential rapists, and I'm supposedly considered to be one."

He didn't mention anything about the fact that _he_ had been more often with Hinata lately, something that really _should_'ve made Sakura feel jealous – but all she could summon was warmth and happiness for her sake, for _their _sake, something that strangely made her guilty – and in his eyes, she could trace herself.

She could trace that part of her that had been aching to move on from the past that everybody seemed to have abandoned whilst she was desperately clinging to a ship that had already sunk to the bottom of the ocean.

That part of her that whenever she saw_ them_, she had wanted to cry – but all she could do was smile, and smile, and _smile_, and pretend that everything was alright when all she could feel was the world coming down on her shoulders.

And in her heart, she ached along with him.

Thus, deciding to pain him for no longer than needed, she smoothly tried to change the subject. "Yeah… you've any idea how that happened? Neji and Tenten, I mean."

"Nope," Kiba replied thoughtfully as though he truly _was _thinking how, but Sakura knew the tone all to well – his mind was elsewhere. He seemed to have temporarily snapped out of it, though, as he grinned mischievously at her; "I bet it was at that club. They didn't even notice we were gone – which says much, if you ask me."

"_Kiba_!"

"What? A little venting of sexual frustration isn't half-bad sometimes, if you ask me. Especially when the guy is a masochistic android emo, and the girl is a sadistic nutcase with abnormal mood swings."

"Who's a sadist?"

The two jumped at the source of the voice not too far behind them, and widened their eyes at the unexpected sight.

"… Wow," was all Sakura could say for the second time the same night.

"I'm one helluva lucky bastard tonight," Kiba whistled with a smirk.

Tenten – because it was indeed none other but her – raised one of her eyebrows in response, although a hint of amusement could be shown at the way her lips tilted upwards. "I'd not call you lucky after I'm through with you, but a bastard sounds about right to me."

He feigned a look of hurt. "Why do you pretty girls always hate me so much?" he whimpered, causing Tenten to roll her eyes and swat at him playfully (just to have him wince at the stinging pain; she wasn't one of Hyuuga's top bodyguards for nothing).

"Has Neji seen you tonight?" Sakura wondered, and the smug smirk that surfaced on the Chinese girl's face told her all she needed to know. Laughing, she added; "Eye-popping or jaw-dropping?"

"Well, I don't know, really… it was hard to focus on what his eyes or mouth were doing when I was busy watching the colors of the rainbow reflect on his face," she informed with an all-too-casual tone to seem innocent, causing another laugh erupt from Sakura as Kiba was too busy ogling her cleavage.

Sakura could understand why – saying that Tenten's sleeveless dress reached to her thighs was generous, and its deep v-neckline was even broader than Sakura's; the many black metallic sequins on the front glistening slightly in the light drew attention to her stunning figure rather than her broad shoulders and a bit too flat chest; her black platform heels made her toned legs look even longer than they were.

"Aren't you supposed to be a bodyguard, by the way?" Kiba asked amusedly as he flicked a thumb meaningfully in the direction of her clothing. "Is it really appropriate to dress like _that_? Not that I mind, but…"

"Nope," she retorted cheerfully. "The material isn't tight, so it's easy to move in, and my heels are platform, not too high and light-weighted, which means that I could easily outrun you in this. Besides, I opted for black, so that I wouldn't draw too much attention to myself."

"You draw plenty of attention to yourself already," Sakura pointed out as she grinned meaningfully at Kiba, causing Tenten to swat him across his head once more.

"OW! What the _hell_, Tenten?"

"I have a face, you know."

"I know. But with a body like that, it'd be a crime not to, you know. _OW_! Stop hitting me, you crazy woman!"

"I would, but with a _brain_ like that, it'd be a crime not to, _you know_."

"I take back whatever I've said about Neji being a lucky son of a bitch so far. Neji's an _un_lucky son of a bitch. OW! I _knew _it! You're defending him because you're in love with hi – ow, ow, _OW_!"

Laughing at her friends' childish antics as Kiba hid behind her in mock fear, Sakura sighed with the tone of an old, wise man; "Behave yourselves, my children."

"Dude, if you were my mom, I'd be seriously creeped out," Kiba announced as he backed a few steps away from Sakura, readying himself for her attack.

In true Sakura fashion, her eyes narrowed dangerously as she smiled sweetly, _too _sweetly, to seem innocent. "Why is that, _my son_?"

"Duh." He rolled his hazel eyes at her dumb question. "You're dating Naruto."

Sakura's playful anger dissipated at once; for a reason she couldn't quite comprehend,

(_although she did comprehend, _too _well; she just didn't want to think of it)_

her heart sunk like a stone into her stomach, making her lightly nauseous. "Yeah…"

A heavy silence lingered in the air until a forceful pull on her arm brought her back to reality. "C'mon," Tenten's voice sounded cheerfully as she dragged the two towards the entrance of the restaurant, Kiba whimpering something about being too young to die. "Let's go to dinner."

* * *

Alright, alright  
Everything in my life is so fucked up, fucked up  
I'm losing my grip

* * *

It was bizarre, Ino pondered, as she irritably stabbed at the miso ramen before her with her chopsticks, how much it could bother her.

Her eyes darted sideways to the pinkette that had been the center around which her thoughts had been revolving the past few days, watching

(_annoyed_)

as she animatedly spoke to the birthday "child" – for the first time in weeks, no, _months_, Uzumaki Naruto looked more pleased than ever.

One could've associated it with the many variants of ramen placed before him (and the other guests), and the promise that there'd be mouth-watering red bean soup and plenty of sweets later on in the evening, accompanied by the grande finale – the birthday cake.

Or perhaps the mountain of gifts in the far corner of the dining room, or the fact that (_almost_) all of his friends were gathered into one place – and such a fancy one, at that.

But Ino knew that it was not the case.

The fact that he was so blindingly, goddamned freakishly _joyful _was right before her eyes, as Sasuke, sitting on her left side, snorted – albeit softly, or as softly as the Uchiha could manage anyway – at the playful (_and begrudgingly _friendly) banter between the blonde and the pinkette sitting on his other side.

It was almost like watching an old tape she had just rewound – the freaking Trio, with a capital _T_, back together just like in the old days.

And Ino didn't belong with them.

Back then, she hadn't cared. She was Sakura's best friend, and she was content with just that. She admired Sasuke and she was annoyed by Naruto's behavior, but she had the instinctive urge to step aside for her best friend, just like Naruto himself had done – although Sakura wouldn't admit it out loud, she strongly suspected she had had feelings for him.

(But was it possible not to, being best friends with _Uchiha Sasuke_?)

But it was different now.

She wasn't just Sakura's best friend anymore.

She was the girlfriend of aforementioned _Uchiha Sasuke._

_(even if it felt less and less like it)_

She knew she _should_'ve been happy for her best friend. She had been nagging about her strange behavior for quite a while now, and she had desperately tried to revert her best friend back to her normal personality – it seemed like Sakura's fiery temper and brute mental strength had been torn to shreds for a reason she couldn't comprehend.

And she knew she _could_'ve been if she had been unaware of the situation.

(_ignorance is bliss, or perhaps it would've hurt even more)_

But Ino wasn't one to live on should've-beens and could've-beens. She was an impulsive, _live-in-the-present-and-forget-the-past_ kind of girl, and as it was, she'd rather deal with the hurt she was feeling right now and take the guilt later, rather than try to bear with it.

Perhaps one could call her selfish.

But the fact that perhaps, _perhaps _she was beginning to understand Sakura's change in personality – both times, when she became like a lifeless doll, and now back to normal – and the _true _reason behind it.

But it was so much, so _hurtful_, she didn't even want to begin thinking about it.

She ignored Naruto's loud voice as he accused Sasuke of stealing his milk

(_the fact that Naruto had decided for _milk _as an accompanying drink at a birthday dinner at one of the fanciest hotels in Japan didn't cease to amaze her)_

and suddenly, _desperately_, wished that Shikamaru had been there.

He had even bought a present together with her – after the embarrassing episode in Kinjo, he had offered to take her along to a shopping trip on a more secluded shopping street – but had then announced that he was unable to come to the party due to the fact that he, along with the Royal Sand Siblings, had been requested to be present with Tsunade and the other Kages at a banquet in Raikagure.

Ino didn't know what feeling was more overpowering – the strong relief that she'd not have to put up with Temari's presence combined with Shikamaru at Naruto's party, or the piercing disappointment that _he_ wasn't going to be there as well.

And all of a sudden, before Ino herself quite registered what she was doing, she leaned across the table so that she'd peer at her best friend's earrings with accusing baby-blue eyes.

"Ugly."

Blinking slightly stupidly, Ino looked up to see the person who had beat her to what she was about to do as Sasuke's eyes narrowed, Sakura started smiling, and Naruto beamed.

"Sai!" the latter exclaimed, enthusiastic. "I haven't seen you in _forever_!"

The aforementioned smiled back. "Hey there, Dickless."

Sakura held back a fuming Naruto as he screeched about castrating Sai and how his size outdid the designer's by far. He seemed rather unfazed by it all though, as his smile remained intact. "I've read that the more a person talks about something, the farther away it's from the truth. That must apply to you as well, Dickless, as your penis isn't half the size you claim it to be."

Sasuke hid a smug smirk, but Ino noticed the faint twitching in the corner of his lips; she felt inclined to smile herself. Sai was a rather odd one, indeed.

"WHY, YOU – _SAI_, YOU IMPERSONAL FREAKISH ICE CUBE! YOU'RE EVEN _WORSE_ THAN THE BASTARD!" He pointed accusingly at the ever-so-blank-faced Sasuke, almost poking him in the eye. "I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THAT WAS _POSSIBLE_, BUT YOU'RE EVEN _MORE_ OF A BASTARD THAN THE BASTARD!"

The Bastard I, who Ino strongly suspected secretly didn't feel up to sharing his little nickname, glared back at him. "Watch it, _clumsy idiot_. I don't care if it's your birthday, I can still kill you in my sleep. You're too loud to be legal."

"For once, I'll agree with the Emo Manwhore." Ignoring Sasuke's low growl, he continued; "You really _are_ a loudmouth, Dickless."

"SAI – SASUKE – YOU – _YOU_ – I'M GOING TO –"

"_Naruto_!" scolded Sakura, in an attempt to hush him as he shrunk considerably, cowering in fear at her dangerous, feral expression. Another indication to a smirk could be spotted on Sasuke's lips, and a jerk of jealousy shot through Ino. How did she do that? How did she do it all so easily, make him _react_, when all Ino could do was _force_ him to react… through _her_, nonetheless?

"Sai, get to the point. I know you came here for a reason," Sakura sighed as she swatted the two boys on either side of her as they started bantering again; Sasuke scowled at her whereas Naruto settled for a more childish sulk, gaining quite the few stares from the waitresses (although they were much too busy to ogle Sasuke to notice anything else).

"I came here to wish Dickless here a happy birthday –" ("_HEY!"_ Naruto shrieked, to which Sasuke commented that he'd make anybody in a 3-mile-radius deaf, to which Naruto called him an asshole, to which –) " –and also, I've some news for you, ugly hag."

"News? For me?" Sakura raised an eyebrow, halting Naruto's attempts to steal his best friend's pieces of pork in his ramen soup by forking his hand.

"Yes. Versace saw your advertisement video with Emo for Watanabe Corp., and they liked you quite a lot. You, along with Ino, are going to participate in the Versace fashion show in Tokyo November 4th."

_No,_ was the single word shooting across Ino's mind as she immediately tensed in her seat.

_No way._

_No freaking, __**fucking**__ way._

She had been wrong.

Sakura hadn't just become her old self again.

She had become more than that.

The old Sakura had been insecure – she knew of some of her good qualities, like her intelligence, but she was perfectly well-aware of her flaws; and that had always hindered her to areas that gave Ino confidence in knowing that she outdid the pinkette in; for example boys, fashion or beauty.

But now…

She had everything Ino wanted.

_And more, _the blonde mentally added as she could feel jealousy brew inside of her, making her blood boil with rage.

"November 4th…," Sakura pondered aloud, unaware of the glares suddenly directed her way. "That's in two weeks, isn't it?"

He nodded, as a thoughtful expression occupied her face. _Why is she thinking about it? Why is she _considering _whether she wants to join a _Versace _show or not?_ Ino wanted to scream, but all she did was to grit her teeth in annoyance.

"Well," the pinkette finally beamed at him in response, "if nothing comes up, I'll be more than happy to be part of it."

_If nothing comes up?_

_IF NOTHING COMES UP?_

If looks could've killed, there would've been no point with this, as our heroine would have been relinquished and buried six feet underground in no time at all.

However, as it wasn't possible, Ino settled for trying to tighten the reins keeping her temper on a leash, trying not to detonate and hurl her untouched ramen bowl at her best friend, stabbing her in the eyes with the chopsticks in her trembling, fisted hands.

Then, just as she was relatively assured that she wouldn't explode, an image flickered across her conscious.

Unknown faces, unknown voices.

"_So that's the Yamanaka girl._" Sneer. _"All looks, no brains. In ten years, all that will be left is wrinkles and an old body that has become too unhealthy for her to live in. She looks like an anorexic… a bimbo… so stupid… why does Sasuke-kun like her_?"

Something in Ino started to crack.

"_Have you heard of that Haruno Sakura? I heard she's the Hokage's apprentice!_" Gasp. "_No way! But isn't she too young to work at the hospital?... I've heard that if she wasn't 18, she would've been the most top-ranked surgeon in the country! She'll exceed even Tsunade-sama_!"

Crack. Crack.

That blissful, joyous smile Sakura wore when 10-year-old Sasuke was still standing at the school gates waiting for her despite the fact that she was almost half an hour late, the still remnant smile as he scolded her, being utterly irritable for doing so.

That smile she only reserved for _him_ then.

That smile she only reserved for him _still_.

Crack. Crack.

"… _I don't _hate _you, Sakura._"

The hug. His face expression.

The soft, unknown emotion she couldn't find the word for in his eyes.

(_that she _didn't _want to know the word for please please please just let it be, leave me alone PLEASE)_

Crack. _Crack_.

Her mother, watching

(_with an expression Ino could only define as 'broken'_)

as her father, some distance away, smiled lovingly at _that_ red-haired bitch, grasping Ino's hand so tightly that it _hurt_ as she pulled her away back home, closing the door shut as all the paralyzed blonde could hear as she slid down with her back against her parents' bedroom door was her mother's loud, hysterical sobs.

The image changed. Same place, same scenery, even the same expressions – but it was _her_, Ino, watching as _he_, Sasuke, smiled lovingly at _her_.

Oh, God, it was _her_.

Her best friend.

Her sister.

The person who had made her to the person she was today, the person who _she_ had made to who she was today.

Sakura. Sakura. _Sakura_, **his **voice started calling out in the hollow of her mind, making her name echo as though once wasn't enough to shatter her self-confidence completely, sending the pieces flying as they seared into every single part of her body, making it ache.

_Sakura._

_Sakura._

_**Sakura.**_

"Sakura," she spoke aloud, her tone like pointed ice encased in silk, and Sasuke's eyes stared suspiciously at her

(_and it felt like he had just _hit _her; did Sakura's well-being matter so much that he'd suspect his own girlfriend?)_

as the pinkette's head snapped in alarm in her direction. Sai was long gone, and Naruto's eyes were now dull with something Ino couldn't quite put her finger on – yet slightly warning – as he, too, laid eyes on the other blonde.

"Where did you get those earrings?"

The question was filled with much too venom to sound casual, or even innocent. Sasuke's eyes narrowed further, whereas Naruto diverted his away from them, settling solemnly on his ramen bowl, his previous glee gone.

It was almost _amazing_, she mused, how fast she could disrupt a happy atmosphere.

Just like that.

As easy as they had disrupted hers.

Perhaps there _was_ some justice in the world, after all.

"I – uh – um," Sakura stuttered unsurely, a flush tinting her cheeks as her fingers played nervously with the chopsticks, not meeting Ino's uncharacteristically sharp eyes. "I – I… forgot."

_**Liar.**_

Something flashed across Ino's eyes, but it was much too fast for the other three to catch sight of.

"Really," she spat with a taunting sneer. "Well, I suggest you not go back to the place where you bought them anymore. They're absolutely _hideous_."

A ringing silence lingered in the air after her statement, a pregnant pause filling in the blanks as Naruto closed his eyes, seemingly in pain; Sasuke merely continued to leer at her, and Sakura still refused to meet her eye.

"I've always known you've a bad sense of fashion, you know," she said airily with an all-too-gleeful tone to seem normal – almost sadistic. _Unnaturally _sadistic. "You've always been terrible with clothes. But then again, nothing really fit you before… people would only notice your forehead."

Sasuke was _definitely _glaring at her now. She could feel it, even if she continued to blatantly stare at the pinkette, whose hands shook worse than ever. But she was afraid to meet his gaze.

Because if she saw it, if she saw that ill intent directed towards _her_ because she couldn't keep it inside any longer, she'd most definitely cry.

And she didn't want that. She wasn't prepared.

Not yet.

"Your forehead is still as large than ever… but I guess we're all used to it now." She laughed humorlessly, and it sounded shrill, _fake_, to her ears. "But I still can't believe you've so terrible a style that you actually _wear_ something like _that _–"

"Ino."

The low, warning rumble from beside her made her eyes widen considerably.

She had known that he'd disapprove. She had known that he'd most likely tell her off later, when they were alone.

But for him to intervene…

It was something unexpected.

Something so much worse than what she had imagined.

"What, Sasuke-kun?" The irritation broke through her carefully created filters that she had once made for _him_.

"Stop. You're ruining the mood of the party," he informed her in his usual voice devoid of emotion, but the warning glare he shot her conveyed his thoughts with no further words.

She wanted to say that they were in a corner of the dining room and that even though Naruto was the center of the party, everybody had plenty of fun on their own.

She wanted to say that she had a reason good enough for her to ruin the mood.

There were so many things trying to burst the seams of her sealed lips that her throat felt constricted and tight with all the words

(_and tears_)

kept inside.

But all she could do was snarl a, "I'm going to the bathroom", and promptly headed for the bar, telling herself one single thing:

She didn't mind.

She wasn't _supposed_ to mind.

All he had done just now was to defend his – _her_ – best friend, didn't he? Ino had been unfair. She had said something unjust, and he knew it and therefore stopped her from causing more harm than necessary.

He had only protected his friend. His _friend_.

So why did it feel as though somebody had just pulled out a knife from her chest, leaving the gash spurting her blood behind?

* * *

_Some days I bleed, I fall like a stone  
I'm always afraid, I feel so alone, got a…_

* * *

It felt like déjà-vu, Hinata contemplated, as she watched the dancing couples before her in a corner of the grand ballroom of Konoha Grand Hotel, leaning against one of the many large glass windows with a view of the Konoha river.

Her eyes trailed to the setting before her. It was dusk, and although the sun had yet to set, the crystal chandeliers above them had already been lit; the dancing couples, most of them fair-skinned, resembled graceful vampires.

It was beautiful, in her opinion, and that's exactly why she didn't belong in the picture.

Hinata had always been a bystander – always an onlooker, never a participator.

It wasn't something she was saddened about – perhaps she would've been, had she been younger and less used to it, but as of right now, she was content with just being there at all.

But, she mused with the hint of a smile on her lips as she glanced sideways at her aggravated cousin, she knew _exactly _who was just _dying _to participate.

The fact that Neji was so eager – and so furious – was neither the fact that he liked dancing nor socializing with pretty girls, which was another part of the slow dancing occurring before their pearly white orbs.

_No, _she thought – and the now the smile could be held back no longer – _he didn't want to socialize with pretty girls._

She followed his gaze to the brunette on the other side of the room – whom his eyes had not left all night – who rejected the umpteenth boy gathering up the guts to ask her to dance.

_He just wanted to socialize with _one _of them._

A very specific one.

Although Neji and Hinata had definitely not shared the closest of bonds, Neji wasn't alone about being an extravagant observer; Hinata knew Neji's expressions and thoughts in and out, a result of spending almost every minute of the day, except when she was in the Hyuuga compound, with each other.

And as of right now, she could tell what he was thinking – even if Tenten, because it was indeed her he was watching, rejected another boy, and _another_ one, she'd sometime during the evening grow tired and finally agree and dance with one of them.

And who knew what'd happen after that?

Hinata's eyes softened further at the sight of her cousin – who, although he'd obviously deny it if asked, was simply _boiling _with jealousy – and she murmured, "Go, Neji-onii-san."

The bodyguard's head snapped ridiculously fast in her direction, and his already narrowed eyes did so further in an expression of what few people besides Hinata would recognize as confusion. "Sorry, Hinata-sama?"

"You may go." She smiled. "You want to ask Tenten-san for a dance, don't you?"

She wasn't sure where the courage of speaking of his private life had come from – after all, even if he _had_ treated her better as of lately, that didn't necessarily mean he had stopped despising her – but somehow, in the back of her mind, she felt inclined to continue what she was doing.

(_cheered on by _his _words, _his _compliments, that just gave her piece after tiny piece of confidence)_

"Wha – that – but - ," sputtered the other Hyuuga in response, his face quickly changing from pure alabaster to blazing ruby. "You – no – Hinata-sama – safety – probably doesn't even want to – _no_."

At that precise moment, Hinata watched as another boy, a more stubborn one at that, started pulling on Tenten in an attempt to make her dance. Neji slowly followed her gaze, his eyes narrowing as he fumed silently at the sight before him.

Trailing back to the heiress in an equally wordless question, Hinata merely kept her smile – which had just widened a notch – intact as she made a single nod.

He disappeared swiftly, striding in the direction of the brunette as Hinata continued to smile at the sight of his disappearing back. She snapped out of her trance, however, as a baritone voice rumbled behind her. "Well, well, well – if it isn't Hyuuga Hinata."

* * *

Attention, attention  
Everybody look at me  
Stand up, stand up  
I need your belief

* * *

Sakura gazed at her reflection in the mirror and cursed her hair as she tried to redo the bun that had gone slightly loose since the beginning of the party; her patience running thin, she exhaled sharply in frustration, just in time to see the savior she had been looking for.

"Ino!" she exclaimed in utter relief.

The blonde stiffened as she made notice of the pinkette's presence, as she (_uncharacteristically ungracefully_) stumbled out of one of the marble toilet stalls – or _rooms_ would be the more correct word – and turned on one of the fake gold faucets. "What?" she inquired icily.

Sakura frowned; she had been in a strangely sour mood since the dinner, for a reason she couldn't quite comprehend. Even throughout the opening of Naruto's presents, she had been acting completely bizarre by not making any noise at all and seeming more unenthusiastic than the resident ice block known by the name Uchiha Sasuke himself…

One of her hands flew up to her earrings self-consciously. _Does she know?_

The nervous clenching in her stomach caused Ino's pointed glare redirected at the earrings go unnoticed; and then, just as the blonde was about to exit, Sakura remembered her purpose for calling her name in the first place. "Oh, right, Ino – could you help me with my bun?"

She visibly blanched, and swiveling about, fury Sakura couldn't understand carved into her features, she faced her once more, her voice razor-sharp. "And why should I do that?"

Stunned, the other girl only stared at her in utter disbelief. This was getting weirder by the second. "Uh, because… you usually wear your hair in a bun, and I need help with mine because I don't?"

A bitter, humorless laugh escaped Ino's lips. "That's right. _I _usually wear my hair in a bun. Not you. Never you."

The extreme confusion she was feeling visualized itself on her face in the form of a perplexed frown. "… Yeah…?"

A tense silence fell between the two best friends as Ino's eyes traveled downward from her hair, obviously disapproving of what she was seeing. Her scrutinizing gaze stopping at the sight of her shoes, she dully remarked; "Those are the shoes I wanted, aren't they?"

Sakura was growing increasingly uncomfortable; the conversation was taking a turn she didn't quite appreciate, and she had a bad feeling about it. "Yeah. I bought them because you said you were going to use your white Benjamin heels you had at Ami's party…"

"Maybe," the blonde shot back as something flared in her baby-blue eyes, "I said _maybe_."

The pink-head examined her best friend's face cautiously, and then asked; "Are you okay, Ino? You should cut down on the drinks a little – you're acting sort of weird, you know."

It was too much for the blonde. Barely a second later, a shocked silence filled the room as a tube of lipgloss Sakura had barely just dodged connected with the ground with a loud clatter, cracking slightly as the sparkling liquid slowly formed a pool of red on the floor.

* * *

Rejection, rejection  
Always seems to follow me  
Head down, head down  
I need some relief

* * *

"Kiba-kun!"

Her little gasp of surprise made his lips quirk slightly upwards as he allowed himself to drown into those god-forbidden pools of ivory again. It was strangely painful – this feeling of being swallowed whole, of barely being able to breathe, and yet he was addicted to it.

"The one and the only." He grasped Hinata's pale digits as he watched a slight flush appear on her cheeks (_much to his delight_) as he pulled her onto the dancefloor. "Shall we?"

A barely visible nod, and then they were out on the dancefloor, his arms encircled around her waist

(_and they never, _ever_ wanted to leave that place_)

and hers around his neck, resting the palms of her cool hands against his neck, which felt as though it was on fire at her touch.

Cremated alive and drowning at the same time. It was like he couldn't stop using death metaphors in his mind around her.

But still, as long as he was around her, Kiba would gladly die an infinite amount of times. "... Kiba-kun…," her voice penetrated his thoughts as he was torn back to reality, along with the worry and concern in her tone.

He hid the fully-fledged grin that was on its way to his face. _So she still cares._ "What?" he inquired, as though he didn't already know what she was asking about.

Hinata paused, as though wondering whether or not to voice her thoughts aloud. Then; "…Nothing."

He knew that she didn't want to intrude his privacy, and that she thought that if there was something he wished to talk about, he would. Unfortunately for her, Kiba wasn't in the slightest mood for discussing his problems – not when they seemed so far away this fleeting moment.

These past few days had been like torture. Watching her with _him_, and the oxymoronic blonde who was the lucky receiver of her feelings having gotten things completely backward and somehow thinking that _Kiba _was the one she was in love with. As though things weren't ironic enough, he was trying to pair the two of them up – an impossible thought he didn't want to entertain, even less being forced into thinking by _him_, of all people.

Thus, he wanted to keep his thoughts away as far as possible from him, from _them_, and the possibly inevitable that'd happen – and just keep swaying to the music, softly, slowly, and for the first time the past week, not hold any other girl's gaze but hers.

And he wondered, inwardly, how he could possibly have gone so long without just letting himself fall back in love with her.

(_not that he had ever stopped loving her, no matter how many he kissed, no matter how many different girls that awoke next to him the morning afterwards)_

Some called him ruthless. A cruel heartbreaker who didn't care about anybody else but himself.

How ironic that the one girl he actually cared for was in love with another, and didn't even know his feelings – nor the depth of them – for her.

And before he knew it, before he was processing his actions and be able to regret his train of thoughts, he had spoken his mind. "If I were to say –"

She perked up at his voice, blinking at him in anticipation of what he was about to utter, and a pang of anxiety ran through him

(_as he wondered, _what am I doing?_, but it was too late to stop now)_

as though he had been electrocuted. "- that I was in love with you, what'd you do?"

She froze.

They stood there, as unmoving as statues, on the dancefloor for a while; Hinata staring at him with uncensored shock, and he with an undecipherable expression, unable to fully describe his inner turmoil with just a gaze.

Words weren't enough – they were _never_ enough – but at the moment, it felt like he had said everything he needed to say.

And then, from the corner of his eye, he saw something – _someone _– emerge from the men's bathroom.

In the blink of an eye, it felt as though somebody had just rudely tugged him down from Cloud Nine. Not that he had been that happy to begin with, but he had gone lightheaded merely in her presence – was this his punishment for being absent from it for too long? – but the brutal wake-up call summoned the insinuation of a bitter smirk on his face.

_What am I doing? _he asked himself again. What was the meaning with all of this? It'd lead to nothing, perhaps except utter awkwardness, and the destruction of the close bond they shared.

And if nothing else, he wished to remain her friend.

"… Relax, I'm just kidding," he grinned at her playfully, and he could see her confusion – and the trace of slight hurt

(_did she really care? his heart skipped a beat)_

as he continued; "I just thought of something I would do. See ya!"

Without looking back, Kiba could tell the loudmouth blonde had already made his way from the men's bathroom to the abandoned Hyuuga heiress on the floor. He could already picture her flushed, albeit blissfully joyous gaze at him – and his probably upset expression at Kiba just leaving her like that; he could hear him screaming obscenities about the dog-lover even as he left the dancefloor.

He didn't even wince when he could hear him shriek something about getting him 'mighty jealous' and Hinata's slight stutter as he took Kiba's place in the close embrace with _her_.

Instead, his fingers clenched spasmodically around a glass of vodka he had swiped from a random table, and he grinned (_fake, always so fake, but he couldn't, _wouldn't_, smile like that to another girl but _her) at the closest, seemingly unoccupied girl.

"Hey beautiful, why is such a gorgeous girl like you standing here alone?"

* * *

_It's easy to see, I'm flat on my back  
I sigh and I scream, I'm under attack_

* * *

Sakura had never been a person to boast patience. Even though it was hard to believe due to her mood change as of lately, she was more than often foul-tempered – something that had simmered down due to her guilt, but which was now brewing up to the surface with an ungodly speed.

She knew she should fall back into her role of the victim, the bad guy (_girl_). She was supposed to bow her head and stutter an apology. She was supposed to feel the guilt for being in love with a guy who was dating her best friend – no, _sister_, and that alone should overpower all of her instincts to snap back.

But Sakura was Sakura. She wasn't Hinata, she wasn't morally flawless, and she damn as hell wasn't a freaking _saint_. She had her obligations and her boundaries, which she knew she was overstepping and breaking, but she wasn't going to stand there and take shit that didn't even make _sense_.

"What the hell, Ino?" she therefore snarled with narrowed eyes. "I don't know _why the hell _you've got a stick up your ass, but don't take it out on _me_!"

Something flared in the blonde's eyes at her statement. "I'll damn as well take it on you! You – you've ruined _everything_! Everything!" she shrieked, and tears were starting to form in her baby-blue eyes. "I – I – I _saw _them first! I saw the freaking shoes _first_, I started putting up my hair in a bun _first_, I started modeling _first,_ I did everything _before _you! If you'd have wanted to change something… if you had something against it… you should've fucking SAID something! How the hell was I supposed to know? You never tell me _anything_ anymore!"

Sakura felt a sudden ache in her gut as though she had been stabbed. This wasn't about the shoes, or the bun, anymore.

But she wasn't going to back the hell down.

"I don't know _what_ you're talking about," she retorted coolly. "If you _wanted _the shoes so badly, you should've said something to _me_ before I took them."

For some strange reason – although she was suspecting the reason, but she would rather not motivate that idea – Ino's mouth fell open, agape; then, regaining her pride, she drew up herself, shaking slightly, as though she was unable to contain the anger pouring out from every cell of her body.

"FINE! _FINE_!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, making the pinkette flinch just the slightest at her roar, "YOU CAN TAKE MY FUCKING SHOES! YOU CAN TAKE MY FUCKING BUN, MY FUCKING JOB… BUT DON'T EVEN _THINK _OF TAKING MY _BOYFRIEND_, FOREHEAD GIRL!"

She had said it.

She had finally mentioned the _true _reason behind her rage, the _true _topic that they were speaking of.

Sakura's breath hitched in her throat for the fraction of a second, and then, she could feel all _her_ rage being summoned inside of her. It was strange, really – she hadn't been this angry for months.

And it almost felt… well, considering the circumstances, it should've been completely off the mark and it should've been just plain _wrong, _but damn, did it feel _good._

She felt strong. On top of the world, almost. Undefeatable.

After months of vulnerability and weakness and crying –

- and here she was, feeling almost lightheaded by this… this _anger_. All of the frustration, all of the angst and the self-loathing and the hatred she had held against _them _and guilt and _everything_… all of it rushed out of her at once, as somebody who had held their breath underwater for too long and suddenly resurfaced.

And all the oxygen came pouring back into her at once as she exhaled sharply.

"WHAT THE FUCK_, PIG?_" she yelled as she saw Ino visibly blanch at her sudden comeback. "I'VE NEVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT TAKING YOUR BOYFRIEND!"

(_but you don't have to say it, people notice anyway, _a traitorous voice whispered in the back of her mind,)

" WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? I'VE ALREADY _TOLD_ YOU, I DON'T LOVE HIM –"

(_liar, _that voice whispered again)

"- AND I'VE NEVER HAD -,"

(_liar liar pants on fire liar liar pants on fire liar liar…)_

" – SO GET _OFF_ MY BACK ALREADY! IS THAT WHAT YOU THINK OF ME? YOU REALLY THINK I'D DO THAT TO YOU?"

(_yes, you would_ _if you could_)

"DO YOU REALLY THINK I'M THAT KIND OF FRIEND?"

(_yesyesyesyesyes, a hundred times yes)_

" DO I LOOK LIKE SOMEBODY YOU CAN'T TRUST? SOMEBODY WHO'D HURT YOU? SOMEBODY WHO'D JUST BACKSTAB THE PERSON THAT'S BEEN LIKE A SISTER TO ME ALL MY LIFE? _DO I_?"

"I DON'T _KNOW_!" the blonde shrieked in response. "I don't know, I don't fucking _know_…"

Sakura knew what she didn't know. But she'd like to pretend that she didn't.

"… Then maybe it's time for you to use that pretty head of yours, _Pig_," she snapped icily as her fingers clamped around the doorhandle, turning her back to her best friend.

(_Because if she stayed another moment _there_, another moment listening to the tears about to spill over because of _her_, she'd without a doubt go insane)_

"And by the way, stop drinking so much. It's bad for your health – and _brain_, obviously."

And with those words, she stomped out of the toilet, her cheeks flushed with wrath, her mind swimming over with mental insults so sharp they could've pierced through steel. And even if she was so furious she could barely feel the soles of her feet anymore, it felt like something had become lighter. Inside of her, or as though a strangling hold about to make her choke had lessened just the slightest.

And for the first time in quite a while, she felt more _alive_ than she had in a long, long time.

* * *

False sense of security  
Giving me a real sense of insecurity  
Messing with my head now, head down  
What the fuck is wrong with me

* * *

"Sasuke-_kun_!"

Sasuke knew Naruto was only joking when he said he was as socially adept as a baboon and that his knowledge when it came to women only extended as far as their anatomy and what his eyes could see.

And although Sasuke _hated_ to admit it, he really didn't _know _how to deal with women.

Because if he did, he would've come up with a better way to pry the redhead currently clinging to his backside (and quite indiscreetly slowly grinding against his ass) off him than just saying 'Get off, Karin', and attempt a gentle shove that didn't quite work.

(_violence was never the answer, especially when it came to women – hell hath fury for women scorned, and so Sasuke knew, having grown up with Sakura)_

With a great inner gratitude (note the word: _inner_), Sasuke was saved from his cruel fate as the light turquoise-haired boy accompanying said girl grasped hold of her collar and yanked her backwards roughly, summoning a light 'oof!' as he smirked, displaying rows of razor-sharp, almost inhuman teeth. "Sorry about that, Sasuke. And you, four-eyes –" At this, he threw a dirty glance at the shrieking redhead's way, " – _behave_."

"Fuck you, sharkface," she spat venomously as he merely wiped the spray of saliva off his face with a boastful smirk.

"I know you wish to, but sluts with hair dyed to look like blood splattered all over it isn't my kind of thing," he casually threw back as Karin angrily shrieked insults, to which he merely turned his back to her, maddening her further. "Anyhow, Sasuke, we came here for a reason – not just to torture you by having the Slut drool all over you."

He furrowed his brow slightly; they were moving faster than anticipated. "And that'd be?"

"The pedophile told us to – _ouch_!"

"Don't say such things about Orochimaru-sama!" the redhead screamed, jabbing a sharp nail into the wincing Suigetsu's arm. "Show some goddamn _respect_, you son of a bitch!"

"Respect?" he scoffed. "Yeah, I'll show him some respect when I kick that old geezer's ass for being such a creep. Didn't you see the way he looked at your ass the other day?"

"Why do _you_ care? Excuse me for having a nice ass!"

"Psh, I don't. And you, a nice ass? What next, Kabuto actually goes undercover as Barney on his days off?... Damn, that's one heck of a _creepy _mental image."

"For you to know that I've a nice ass, you must've looked at it in the first place! You _pervert_!"

"There wasn't much to look at anyway –"

"Why you –"

"_Enough_," Sasuke rasped, irritated, as both heads snapped in his direction. "What did you come here for?"

Silence fell as Karin threw another dirty glance the shark-boy's way before promptly informing; "_Orochimaru-sama _told us to come here to tell you a message." She sobered considerably as a more serious face expression replaced her anger. "He wants you to come back, Sasuke-kun."

His eyes darkened. "And if I don't?"

"Well," grinned Suigetsu all too cheerily to seem appropriate for the situation, "there'll be hell to pay, then."

A heavy silence weighed down the atmosphere as Karin warily gazed at the two; Suigetsu still wearing his unnatural grin as Sasuke glared threateningly at him. After what seemed like an infinity, the shark-like boy chuckled, "Don't _worry_, Sasuke. We're just here as messengers for the evening. Although, I'd have to say – your ridiculous 'high security' isn't much of a challenge. You guys are _dangerously_ easy to infiltrate."

Another pause, and then, in a low growl; "Are you done, then?"

The shark-boy surveyed the Uchiha before him, and with a slightly exasperated sigh, he announced; "We're done. Let's go, Karin."

He tugged on the redhead's arm, but she, with great annoyance, snatched her sleeve out of his grasp as she snarled ferociously; "I'm coming. _Soon_." She took off her black-rimmed glasses with a swishing movement as her companion muttered, 'Not _again_' with a roll of his eyes.

"Sasuke-_kun_," she half-moaned in what he supposed was a sultry voice as her death-grip on him returned as her digits curled around his arm, "won't you dance with me?"

"No," he simply responded, ignoring the obvious batting of her dark eyelashes and pouting of her glossy, red lips.

"Don't worry about your girlfriend, Sasuke-kun," she whispered seductively into his ear as she leaned closer; "I don't see her anywhere…"

"Oh, yeah, that's right," Suigetsu exclaimed in an exaggeratingly loud voice to purposely disturb her, "he has got a _girlfriend_. A real hot model too, ne, Sasuke? Say, Karin – how do you expect to compete with such a bombshell like Yamanaka Ino?"

She threw a nasty glare his way that clearly told him of the many cruel ways she intended to murder him, yet his grin only widened further at the notion. "She's all looks and no brains, anyway. Like a Barbie doll." She returned to Sasuke, putting on her face expression from earlier once more as she cooed; "But I'm different, Sasuke-kun. I _understand_ you…"

A flash of pink passed Sasuke's vision as it hurriedly (_and furiously_) stomped past him. As he scrutinized it, he realized it was Sakura.

And she was heading for the exit.

And perhaps it _was_ true that he didn't know how to deal with women. Perhaps he truly only knew about as much as them as his eyes could offer.

But at least, he mused as he pried the protesting redhead off him and strode towards what looked like a rampaging Sakura, he knew how to deal with _her_.

* * *

_Alright, alright, everything is just fine  
Here comes, here comes another bundle of hiss_

* * *

"Where're you going?"

She cursed her bad luck as she unwillingly wheeled around with more force than intended, her heels screeching at the speed of her spin, facing the one she'd have liked to avoid the most in this moment.

"I'm going _out_," Sakura snarled, jade eyes crackling with raw, intense anger. Sasuke wouldn't have been surprised if she had started spitting fire.

"… The dobe would be sad to see you leave so early."

"I can just apologize to him in the morning," she threw back, glaring at him in an attempt of warning him not to push the subject further and simply let her _go_. The last thing she needed on her mind was for _him _of all people to give her a lecture, or worse, discuss _why _she was mad in the first place.

But as usual, as effortlessly as though the last four years had only been a trick on her mind, her warnings were as wasted on him as they had been thirteen.

"You've no reason to leave," he deadpanned, onyx eyes piercing into her own, that rolled skywards to avoid eye contact.

Knowing his statement was just to prod about her reasons for leaving, and what'd have translated into a more understandable "What's wrong?" had Sasuke been slightly less of an alien, she exhaled in frustration. "Nothing's wrong, Sasuke."

"Clearly, there'd be something wrong if you're leaving for the sake of it," he pointed out matter-of-factly.

_Thank you, Sir Obvious, I didn't _know _that. Care to fill me in on something else I was unaware of? How about the fact that your girlfriend, aka my _ex_-best friend, is bitching like a crazy junkie without her crack?_ "Just leave it, okay? I'll see you tomorrow –"

"What am I supposed to tell the dobe? That his _girlfriend _left his birthday party merely for the sake of nothing?"

His eyes became hard, challenging, as the pinkette gritted her teeth in annoyance. _So this is it? Your new tactic to get me to spill the beans? Like hell I'll cave for that. _"Just forget it, can't you? It's nothing important anyway –"

"If it's nothing important, then it is no reason to leave."

It became too much for Sakura. The pent-up emotions swirling, no, _raging_ within her like a storm, the tumult and mixture of said emotions,

(_like guilt and relief and sadness and happiness and anger and frustration and-)_

the fact that two of the three people she cared about the most and that she secretly, _guiltily_, held responsible for her own pain when she truthfully knew that it was her own fault this had all begun due to her, had just wrecked her life mercilessly, and she just as mercilessly hurt the other one, and then _him_, one of the aforementioned three, standing there in front of her as though _he_ somehow knew better, as patronizing and infuriating and cold as always…

The resulting inner outburst would've put Hollywood's action movie car explosions to shame.

"Fine!" she snarled ferociously, her tone a pitch shriller than earlier. "So it's _your girlfriend_ who went completely berserk on me in the bathroom, yelling at me for stealing everything from her! Like her _life _and her _career_ and _you_, which is just ridiculous because I'm just helping you guys out, and then she talked about me stealing her _hairstyle_, but excuse me, you don't see that there's some kind of _label_ on every picture of a girl wearing her hair in a bun with 'Copyright: Yamanaka Ino' on it, I mean, she doesn't own –"

"Dance with me."

It could've been a minute, or an eternity—Sakura didn't know. All she was aware of was that she was staring at him, eyebrows still knitted together in an angry frown she wasn't ready to let go of just yet, and that her nostrils were probably flaring

(_so much for looking pretty while being angry; how did the girls in romantic movies always manage to pull it off perfectly? Then again, _their _nostrils probably didn't flare when they were mad, and _their _faces probably didn't turn an ugly shade of magenta… or it was just the wonders of digital alteration that did the trick)_

and that _he_ was looking so infuriatingly, perfectly composed and calm as though he had just commented on the weather, when he had… well, when he had asked her to _dance_ with him, of all things.

"What?" she snapped, her confusion still managing to leak through the filters of her rage.

Sasuke sighed impatiently, causing her to bristle slightly; however, the puzzlement and surprise got the upper hand as his digits encircled around her wrist

(_causing her heart to almost jump right out of its place, which she was pretty sure he noticed considering the fact that he could feel her pulse)_

as he pulled her in the direction of the dancefloor.

Sakura was barely aware of what was happening until his arms were settled around her waist, and his familiar, woodsy (and slightly citrus-y) scent hit her full-on like a tsunami to her nostrils.

"Sasuke," she hissed, eyes narrowing, "what're you _doing_? People will gossip, and Ino's going to freak and kill me—"

"Shh," he only uttered, his warm breath ghosting her earlobe; and strangely enough, she obliged.

(_or _not_ so strangely enough; after all, she had a hard time keeping her head straight and her legs from giving way underneath her)_

As he pulled her closer, she finally gave up the fight. Closing her eyelids, it was as though she was wrapped up in her own world, a safe haven her troubles and negative thoughts couldn't reach—all she was aware of in that fleeting moment was the scent of _him_, her feet moving autonomously in a steady rhythm to his, and the music continuing to steer them forward; slowly, but steadfastly.

It was bizarre, the effect he had on her—the fire she had felt just now, the almighty hear-me-roar anger, had settled down, and there was a strange, alluring calm that felt so nostalgically surreal that she was afraid it was all a dream.

As though to test her theory, her eyelids slowly slid upwards, revealing dazed jade orbs as she pulled away from his neck and instead met his gaze.

"Sasuke?" She spoke his name in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Hn?"

She laughed softly at how he could use his favorite word even as a question. He definitely _was_ an alien. "… You're weird, you know that?"

The answering smirk on his lips was enough to make her insides melt into a puddle of goo—and as cliché as it sounded, for a moment, Sakura was completely convinced that everything would be alright. The world had come to a still around her, and her troubles with it—all that mattered now was to keep on dancing.

To keep on falling, further and further into this world, this world only consisting of her and him and _them_, and never resurface.

A girl can wish, right?

* * *

False sense of security  
Giving me a real sense of insecurity

* * *

Shikamaru needed a smoke.

"You're going to be just fine. Just relax," Iruka blubbered on, seeming far more taken by nervousness than the person in question himself—Shikamaru merely heaved another sigh as he leaned back in his chair, folding his arms in boredom.

"I know, Iruka-sensei. You've said that at least fifty times just these past 30 minutes. _You _should relax, you know—I've done this before."

He smiled apologetically at his student as his hands flopped to his sides, abandoning his nervous gesturing. "I know. It's just… it's the Five Kages. And since Tsunade-sama can't be here, we're here as her representatives… which means that the slightest wrong move could spiral into chaos, which Orochimaru probably is hoping will happen. This banquet can determine the future of Konoha and the Fire County…" He shook his head. "I really don't know how you can be so calm."

Truth was, Shikamaru wasn't. He could still feel something brewing in his stomach uncomfortably—not on the verge that he felt like he was going to throw up, but merely an unpleasant twisting; like sensing a bad omen.

He knew Temari was going to be there; but rather than a comforting thought, it only felt more like a pressuring matter. She'd expect him to be on his best behavior; Suna and Konoha had an exceptionally strong alliance, and the slightest wrong move would not only cause trouble for Konoha, but for _her_ city as well.

It wasn't like Shikamaru was going to be looking for a fist fight with the Raikage, but it still loomed over him like a dark cloud that the five most powerful people in Japan—with the exception of the President—would be looking at him through a microscope, just hoping to find the slightest problem to pick out and jab at.

Not to mention that he'd had to avoid showing far too much loyalty for Konoha, as that'd reveal his status as a double-spy to Oto—but at the same time he'd have to not show too much acquaintance with Orochimaru either, as that'd brand him a traitor in front of the other counties.

"Kakashi's better at this than me, isn't he?" Iruka's shoulders slumped. "It's a shame he's so busy with the preparations for _Konoha's Golden Leaf_'s concert…"

"Not better," the other male corrected him; "just more used to it."

"Yeah. He probably would be more composed than me." He inhaled sharply as he grinned at the pineapple head. "But you don't have to worry too much; leave that task to me. You'll do great."

_Hopefully_, added Shikamaru mentally and sighed once more. "How troublesome."

It'd have been calming to have some cigarettes now, he further pondered on his previous thought as he tuned out Iruka's rants of anxiety. Asuma, his previous mentor concerning the spying, had always had plentiful of them—whether he knew that Shikamaru sometimes took one or two from the pockets of his jacket when he was in the restroom or not looking remained a mystery; but right now, he really wished he had had one of them.

He glanced sideways at Iruka; the other man most likely didn't smoke, and in his current state, wouldn't mind it either if he did. Perhaps if he slipped out and bought one right before the banquet…

No, that was too risky. If the banquet started without him, they'd say he was irresponsible and careless even for being just the fraction of a second late.

His hands slipped into the pockets of his jacket, hoping he'd find any unused cigarettes, but to no avail; all his fingers could grasp was his keys and something round and somewhat sharp that seemed fairly unfamiliar—

His eyes widened in surprise and recognition as he realized what the item was. Pulling it out, he eyed the petite pineapple keyring in front of him warily when a girl dressed in a kimono suddenly stepped out of the previously shut doors before them.

"It's time," she announced with a grave voice that made it sound as though Iruka and Shikamaru were on their way to execution rather than a banquet with highly ranked (and troublesome) politicians.

"Are you ready?" Iruka asked, looking as suicidal as though he'd turn right on his heel, run out of the building and jump in front of a truck at any given second.

"Aa," he replied, as his digits clenched—not _too _hard, as to not break it—around the object, eyes darkened with renewed determination.

* * *

Messing with my head now, head down  
What the fuck is wrong with me

* * *

It felt like a déjà-vu, Kiba decided – a dangerous one at that in so many ways that it was amazing how one single night had turned all tables.

(_even if everything had been shaping up until now to crash to the shore like a tsunami wave, destroying everything in its progress)_

Bonds that had seemed unbreakable had been broken. And bonds that had seemed beyond repair had just healed.

It was strange, he mused, how everything seemed to revolve around _them_. Anything they did, anything they said, hurting each other, comforting each other, _loving_ each other—

(_be it as a friend or more_)

- it all ended up affecting everybody else somehow. Even those years they had spent not speaking a single word more than necessary with each other, it still seemed like the rest of the group orbited around them somehow, hanging onto their every action.

Just waiting for the moment that they'd go back to how they once were.

It had probably been in everybody's unconscious—even accepting them as not being a single entity anymore, it was like waiting for the night to turn to day, or for rain to pour in Konoha during the fall; something inevitable that _would _happen, no matter the circumstances.

And now that it had happened…

Kiba glanced at the blonde next to him, slamming her glass of vodka against the table, as though the more force she used, the less her fingers would tremble with—with what? Fear? Anxiety? Just plain frustration? Kiba could only guess—and wondered if she had known.

But how could she not? They had all been there. They had all witnessed the phenomenon of _them_—their staggeringly stable friendship, the implication of something more lurking beneath the façade always there, the denial; they had only been 13, but even 13-year-olds aren't entirely blind.

So what had she been thinking when she thought that she could take Sakura's place?

He didn't want to answer the question. It was the same thing he thought about _her_

(_who was still smiling, no, _beaming_, despite the fact that she was probably seeing stars and birds revolve around her head as Naruto twirled her right into a wall)_

and about his own feelings; he stifled a wince as he only imagined Ino's feelings right now. Unlike him, _she _had gotten her chance. _She_ had been lulled into a sense of false security, of finally being able to get what she wanted.

And unlike him, she was hopelessly naïve.

_Naive_ could've been Ino's middle name. People could say she was mature for her age, with the way she dressed, or talked around adults—she always seemed so composed, so picture perfect, in front of others; but he knew better. This was the girl who still believed in fairy tales and happy endings, the one who was still waiting for the one she had appointed as her personal Prince Charming to whisk her away to her own Barbie 3-story Dream House, safely tucked away from all things that'd hurt.

The girl who'd rather blindly lead a life that was an illusion than open her eyes to the painful truth.

Some people—the ones that _really_ knew Ino, which were unsurprisingly few—thought that it was cute. Perhaps Sasuke shared this view as well; Kiba wouldn't know, as he never spoke to him about things like these

(_but he had to admit, it was startingly similar to how a certain pinkette had used to be like when they were younger, and he wondered if there wasn't some kind of connection_)

but one thing he knew for sure; her naivety could perhaps be seen as cute, or appealing, and it definitely did seem to protect her from pain temporarily—but it'd also be her downfall.

He heaved a sigh as he ignored the urge to envelop the blonde in a sympathetic hug that'd most likely just earn him a snarl and, worst-case scenario, a slap; drunken Ino wasn't to be messed with, and if anything, she hated pity.

But it was hard not to when he saw a reflection of himself—a mirror image of the same raw hurt, the same pain, increased by tenfold, because _she _damaged herself far more than he let anyone damage _him_—in those baby-blue eyes.

And then, there was _that_ too—another reflection of himself on the dance floor tonight

(_in the form of a certain dark-haired heiress looking far too happy and hopeful when she probably saw stars and birds revolve around her head_)

and yet another, in the form of another blonde who was only too well aware that his happy days were soon going to come to an end, standing next to her.

_Yes_, he decided miserably as he ordered another gin and tonic, he could _definitely _use a hug.

Not French kissing. Not sex. Just a plain, friendly hug.

But no, not even _that_ he could have.

As though being able to read his thoughts, Ino snorted in a very uncharacteristically unattractive manner, and drawled with her unsteady voice; "Life sucks, huh?"

He didn't reply at first, only drinking in the sight before him; all those familiar and unfamiliar people staring into each other's eyes as though they were dreading that the world would come to its demise tomorrow if they didn't look at each other enough, and all those that were just hoping that the one _they _were staring at would return their gaze…

And then there was that third category (or, really, if you thought about it, was just a more pathetic subcategory of the second one), the one that he and Ino belonged in, getting shamelessly wasted _because_ that very gaze wouldn't be returned tonight—or any other night, for that matter.

"Yeah," he decided to agree half-heartedly as he swallowed a mouthful of the bitter drink placed before him, feeling the liquid scorching holes into his throat on its way down, "it sure does."

* * *

Guys, I'm REALLY sorry about the slow update, but real life has been HECTIC (as usual). The 2nd year of high school started perfectly fine, but just as usual, it always ends up with DRAMA, DRAMA AND MORE DRAMA (and sadly, not the kind that you practice in clubs). I don't really want to go in on details, but...

One word: ASJOLAJASLFAJSKAAAAAGGHHHHH. (Yes, in MY dictionary, that's the word for: DAMN IT ALL TO HELL.)

Okay. MOVING ON.

I'm not really happy about this chapter. Seriously. But I've decided that I'll edit it later on if I think of anything better. And I'm also sorry for the lack of funny scenes - I had a bunch of ideas, three that I actually wrote and trashed. Blagh.

I've been receiving a bunch of complaints lately about how my fic is too slow and my chapters too long. I'm sorry, but I just want to keep it realistic somehow. I mean, issues in real life when it comes to complex shit like this - drama and life-altering events and broken bonds and friendship and love and so on - they don't just get solved because of a dramatic fight in the rain, or whatever you're hoping will happen. (Usually.) I really want you guys to see things from the characters' perspective - for instance, Ino's. It's so easy framing somebody as the "Villain" and hate on that person, end of the story.

It's much harder when you know that person. When you want to hate her for being so fucking dense that she can't see what the hell she's doing to the entire group, but you know her issues and you can sympathize with her, yadda yadda, even if it doesn't excuse her being a total Bitch.

(Trust me, I'm speaking from my own experience... even though Ino isn't based on that person, I guess it's sort of like it. And yes, she was my best friend, and we both liked the same guy, even if our story was far less dramatic in comparison to this one. And nope, she isn't the one mentioned in the previous "divorce" predicament, as the one I'm "divorced with" is a guy...)

Anyway, if you guys really don't like this fic, just tell me. I won't discontinue it - but most likely will slow down on the updates. I'm extremely busy IRL and while I love to write, it's the reviews asking me to continue that keep me going with The Boyfriend Test. Like, every time I read a review, even one that only says "please continue", I open up the document and force myself to at least write a sentence, or a paragraph. It's not like I can't take criticism - constructive criticism is always great to improve my writing, so please continue with that - but I'm simply starting to wonder if I really should keep going with this.

And I want to THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR ANSWERING MY QUESTION ABOUT INO LAST CHAPTER! Getting to know your opinion about her being selfish really gave me insight on what you thought and inspired me on how to write Ino!

So, now I've another question... what do you guys think about NaruHina (in this fic)? Waste of time, or worth reading about?

(And to **life's a b!tch, so you deal,** the anonymous reviewer whose review I really wanted to reply to:

You've some seriously awesome insight on how I write my characters! Your analysis of Sakura was really interesting, and, also, incredibly accurate (particularly the latter part). And wow, you noticed the similarities to the manga... you're one of the first to comment on that, but rather than just Shippuuden, it's a mix of both that and Part 1. And thanks! (The reason to why it's taking so long is mentioned above, though.) I dedicate the ShikaIno scene in this chapter to you - I haven't thought about them that much, actually, and thinking of it, I had very little planned for them in the story... anyhow, thanks for your review!)

And oh, random thought: I LOVE BLEACH RIGHT NOW. THE FILLER ARC IS ACTUALLY BETTER THAN THE CURRENT EVENTS IN THE MANGA, AND FADE TO BLACK IS THE BEST ANIME-SPIN-OFF FILLER MOVIE I'VE SEEN SINCE FMA THE MOVIE.

By the way, I'm sorry if the latter part of this fic and this Author's Note is incoherent; I'm blaming it on my cold.

Anyhow, thank you guys so much for the reviews - it always makes me happy to read them, even when it's flaming. I really want to know people's opinions on what I write, so you guys make my day. So, keep on reviewing, pleaaaseee! n.n


	13. o12: the happily never after

**Disclaimer:** As we all know, I don't own Naruto. Neither do I own Madonna's song "Die Another Day" (which you might recognize from the James Bond movie with the same name).

**Current Date in Fic: October 27th (Friday)**

**WARNING: Major swearing coming up in some parts of the fic, too.**

* * *

People always go on about how unpredictable life is.

(_like, breaking bonds with someone you always thought was going to be there)_

I guess that unpredictability scares us. The unknown, the unsafe—that's why we become superstitious, _cautious_, in order to avoid certain scenarios and be able to predict others.

(_"…__Sasuke-kun—"  
"Don't call me that.")_

But sometimes, in life, it's strange how you know exactly what will happen—and even if it's bad, you walk straight-forward towards it. You know it's going to hurt. You know that this might not be the best decision.

(_"..__And? What do you want me to say? I forgive you? '__**It's okay**__'?"  
And you know what's coming next, but you don't want to hear it, yet you stand still, unmoving, and your brain screams RUN RUN __**RUN**__—)_

All you can do is hope for the best and prepare yourself for the pain that's coming next. You go into defense mode, putting up your hands to protect yourself from the blows, suck your breath in so that it won't be punched out of you.

(_—because your heart is going to be broken, and perhaps it'll never repair. Yet, you listen to those words that are going to bring you nothing but blinding pain.)_

But is it just me who's wondering,

_("__Never show your face in front of me again. Never speak to me again.")_

how exactly do you prepare yourself to feel like your entire world is going to be torn apart, and nothing will ever be the same again?

(_"Never again.")_

* * *

**o12.**

It was funny—or not really funny at all—Sasuke thought, how when faced with a situation with several choices, you could possibly feel like you had none at all.

"Well, this is quite the dilemma, Sasuke-_kun_," chuckled the hissy, morbidly delightful voice that the aforementioned loathed so much; the fifty-or-so years old man slowly stroked a silky, ebony strand out of his snake-like, amber eyes, as Sasuke contemplated how it'd feel to just tear all of his hair out from his skull.

He made no response. He ignored Kabuto's soft, mocking laughter he had heard so many times before, focusing on unclenching and clenching his fist rather than planting it in the silver-haired doctor's face; things were bad enough as they were without more complications.

"On one hand, we've got that little blonde beauty queen—," and at this, he nodded in the direction of Ino outside on the arena, pepping her fellow cheerleaders to win the competition, "—down there, who we all know you're dating."

"And then, there's _her_—," and his lips twisted into a maliciously cheery smirk as his eyes trailed to the pinkette sitting on the stands, waiting patiently for _him _to return to his empty seat, "—your precious little _friend_, Sakura-chan. Never thought you two would ever make up again after what happened, but I guess it's true what they say—soulmates just can't be kept apart, no matter how much you try."

He paused. Still no reply.

Not because Sasuke didn't _want _to, or _feared_ to do so. There were so many things swirling in his head at once that he wished to voice—like how he thought this man before him was the worst, most disgusting, absolutely most abominable being to have ever walked the Earth, or just a plain 'fuck off to hell'—but because he didn't _know _what to say.

"We've two antidotes, Sasuke-_kun_."

Because all of that—all of those insults and other angered remarks in his mind—would do nothing about this situation, but perhaps worsen it.

"You could either abandon _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and join _Hebi_ as the official representative for Sound—only for the night, nothing else—and get _one _antidote. You can give it to the one most important to you—whoever that is, we don't know—but whether or not she's the one severely poisoned, that's up for you to tell."

"But by the time the symptoms are starting to show, it's too late, so don't even think about it," was Kabuto's helpful input as he smiled nastily at the glaring Uchiha.

"Or," the other one smiled as he weaved his sickly pale fingers together, "you could join us entirely and declare that you're officially making your return to Oto as of tonight… and receive both antidotes."

"Or perhaps your loyalty to your precious little _Konoha_ means more to you than those two _lady friends_ of yours do? Come to think of it, if you wish to save both, your efforts of getting back in the Uchiha clan would be just a waste, wouldn't it… I've heard they don't like traitors too much, and betraying Konoha once was risky enough," Kabuto said, and both he and the other man laughed coolly, a sound that made Sasuke's fingers dig deeper into the skin of his palms.

"Now, we're not going to press you all too much. That'd be entirely too unfair of us to ask you to come to us just like that, wouldn't it?" Sasuke knew what that look of greed and the flicking tongue over his lips meant to Orochimaru—it was signal that that he had won.

And as much as the Uchiha hated to admit it, it sure felt like it.

"Therefore, we're going to be kind to you. We give you one more hour, _Sasuke-kun_."

* * *

_**3 Hours Earlier**_

Ino couldn't breathe.

She hadn't always been like that around him. It would've been utterly problematic, really, if she had always been unable to breathe in Sasuke's presence—considering all the time they had spent together since they were kids, she'd have died out of lack of oxygen a long time ago if that had been the case.

_He's like a drug_, she thought. _When you're not in its vicinity, it seems so harmless, so weak—once it hits you right-on, you can't even understand how you even let it go in the first place._

A drug would be a good metaphor, she further pondered—he was just as unhealthy too. Temporary, never really _there_; your fate as a junkie was sealed the moment you even sniffed a whiff of it.

And with him, she was always on a high.

But like with drugs, _he_ came at a heavy cost—the repercussions were so much worse than what you anticipated, because words can't describe feelings, can't convey them perfectly until you've had your own share of the emotion, be it good or bad.

(_like that of heartache threatening to tear you apart, or the bitter taste of betrayal, of not knowing who to blame—you for stupidly trusting them, or them for cruelly betraying you_)

But right now, she could say, without a moment's hesitation, that it was bad.

Very, _very _bad.

She knew she shouldn't feel that way. She didn't have the slightest reason in the world to even feel bothered. Ino could, without as much as blinking, come to the conclusion that about two thirds of the male part of the crowd watching her as she stood there in the center of the school gym

(_looking like she had come straight out of a _Vogue _shoot, if _Vogue _models had worn tight, short cheerleading uniforms_)

would've undoubtedly thrown themselves at her feet with a simple wave of her hand.

Whereas _she_ was dressed in impeccably boring clothes that'd have blended her among countless others had it not been for her perfectly straight, chest-length roseate hair—not more than approximately three guys watching her.

(_and two of them being _Lee _and _Naruto_, which could only be associated with a less than appealing description of, 'ew', at least in Ino's eyes)_

So she had no reason to feel as though somebody had just punctured her lungs with a needle, making the air slowly, but painfully clearly, seethe out of the wound—and all her pride with it.

No reason at all, except that the _third_ person watching her—albeit silently and barely noticeably, but nonetheless, his onyx eyes almost never leaving her as they spoke (_did he do that with her as well, or did it only apply to _her?)—was none other than Uchiha Sasuke, the Prince Charming himself.

It wasn't like she hadn't been expecting it. The past two weeks she had been completely furious, and made use of this energy to make herself as impossibly pretty as possible—to make him _regret_, regret that he even _considered _this pinkette to replace her in his heart.

(_if she had ever been there to begin with_)

She had equipped herself with the pride, the mental strength and every single exterior factor needed for the battle to win against the Evil Witch to get Prince Charming back to his senses, but the moment she had seen them, it was as though all of her effort had just flown right out of the window.

Because, as she watched the _couple_—because they did indeed look like one—she had never seen Sakura prettier. Ino had forgotten how vibrant and happy and _alive_ Sakura's smile was in _his _proximity, because it had been gone so long.

And not only was it back, it made her so goddamn frickin' _gorgeous_, that it made the Princess feel as ugly as the hunchbacked Evil Witch with her straw-like grey hair and wart on her cucumber-shaped nose.

It made the Princess want to be in the Evil Witch's shoes, because she had taken away _everything _that she had left—her beauty, her best friend, and her Prince.

It wasn't fair.

It wasn't_ fair._

The bun-haired girl next to her heaved a deep sigh. "Why don't you just _talk _to her?"

She snorted in incredulity. "What's there left to say?"

It was true. Ino couldn't think of anything more to say that didn't sound utterly ridiculous—things like, "_please don't take him away from me_" and "_how could you do this to me?_" had already been torn in half, ripped to shreds and thrown away from the routes stretching to her conscious mind before she even _considered_ it; those were lines fitted for the secondary character in a badly written soap opera, not lines fitted for a prideful, glamorous and highly admirable main character in a beautiful love story.

Not lines fitted for _Ino_.

(_because even an Evil Witch did not say pathetic things like that_)

Tenten opened her mouth to argue with a furrowed brow, but thought better of it as she closed it again. Shaking her head, she answered, "I don't know. Just sort it out, somehow. This—," She gestured meaningfully at Ino and then in the direction of _that _person, because Ino point-blank _refused_ to refer to her as anything else than such, "—_all _of it, is so… weird. _We_ don't get what's going on unless you tell us, and to be entirely honest, I don't think _she_ gets it, either."

She paused, waiting for the full effect of her statement to sink in, but when the stony disgust etched into the blonde's face failed to evaporate, Tenten sighed again—this time in exacerbation. "Can you at least _consider_ joining us after the competition and concert at Ichiraku? Even if you don't want to see Sakura—" She ignored the cringe and glare at the mention of the One-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, "—there's still us. And _him_." Another pause. "I'm sure he misses you too, you know."

Ino almost wanted to laugh out loud at the idea, but didn't.

"Look, I'm just going to go back to them now—" It was with a twinge of regret, Ino noticed, how the common pronoun of _them _made her so uncomfortable; almost like _they _were a separate entity in another world out of her reach, "—but if you change your mind, just call me."

_Perhaps it _is _a good idea to join them afterwards_, she thought. The mental image of her strutting about, looking absolutely picture perfect, outshining _her_ by far in both looks and popularity as she'd be showered in praise for winning the trophy for Konoha whilst settled in Sasuke's arms was appealing…

But then again, imagining _them _together—being able to being held by and holding Sasuke again, but unable to _keep _him there, unable to _feel _him

(_almost as if his very soul and spirit and mind and the very essence of him is with _her_, even when she's hugging him close and never letting go_)

and then, having to see _that_ look—that unfamiliar look of almost-warmth she had _never _been able to experience herself from _him_—as his eyes grazed her face

(_even _thinking _about him watching _other_ parts of her just made her want to hurl)_

was a torture she didn't want to experience again—

"Hey."

She was once again snapped out of a trance for the second time in less than ten minutes as she felt her heartbeat speed up; that masculine, baritone voice… perhapsmaybe_hopefully_ it belonged to—

"Oh, it's _you_."

"Good to see you too," Shikamaru retorted dryly, and she couldn't help but feel her lips quirk slightly upwards.

"Sorry," she apologized without quite meaning it. "I just…"

"Expected me to be someone else?"

"Something like that, yeah," she answered absent-mindedly, her eyes leaving his; she was seldom read easily, but she didn't like taking the risk. "Akimichi-kun! Good to see you too."

She smiled as pleasantly as she could manage, and his cheeks turned a flashy shade of crimson. "Uh-um… hi. Y-you can just call me Chouji…"

"Will do." She turned back to the pineapple-head, who was wearing a faint expression of amusement. "So, what're you guys doing here?"

"What does it look like? Talking to you, of course," the latter replied, sighing. "Troublesome woman."

"Who is, you lazy goddamn—"

"Actually, we've some business with you," he cut across her. "Or well, not as much we—"

"Don't just interrupt me, you idiot!"

"—as Chouji. Chouji?"

Chouji, who had been staring at her in quite the daze, promptly snapped back to reality as Shikamaru _gently_ elbowed him in the ribs. "Ow! Uh, um… w-we—" Another elbowing. "—uh, _I _was wondering if… if you'd like to join us for dinner?"

Ino blinked at the two in surprise, as her lips parted in an attempt to reply, but was interrupted by a fourth voice—a voice ranked right up with Sakura on Ino's Bitch List. "Ditching us for the geeks, Yamanaka?"

"Ami," she muttered through gritted teeth as she spun around to face the maliciously grinning (fake) blonde.

"Ino," the aforementioned replied sweetly, chucking a bottle of Coke into Ino's hands; the latter raised an eyebrow at this. "Some refreshments before the competition, even if it's not sugar-free. Although I _could_ understand your fear of over-consumption of sugar…," she trailed off, glancing meaningfully at Chouji, whose face turned a shade of beetroot-red.

"_Thanks_. By the way, Ami, haven't you gone up a size? You've to be careful with those sugar drinks; you wouldn't want to be kicked out of the squad because _your _fat ass doesn't fit into our uniform anymore," she seethed, eyes narrowing considerably.

The glare she was rewarded with could've pierced through brick, and the raged blush on Ami's cheeks could've rivaled Hinata's. "Screw you, Yamanaka," she hissed angrily. "At least I'm not an anorexic good-for-nothing Barbie like _you_ with no one to like me."

"Right back at you, hon."

She put the bottle of Coke into her bag as she watched the other girl stomp away, when Shikamaru spoke up beside her. "How troublesome."

"You don't say," she retorted with a roll of her baby-blue eyes. "Ami's a real bitch. And she has been worse ever since…"

_Ever since the rumors of me and Sasuke breaking up started to circulate._

The fact that Ino had barely been seen with the rest of _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and their entourage the past two weeks hadn't gone by unnoticed by the rest of the school. Some cheerleaders had even started to show their disloyalty by no longer showering Ino with the amount of admiration and respect she had used to been given, and people had started to talk. Not that they hadn't before, but now that it was confirmed that not everything was perfect in paradise was a big thing, and there wasn't a single person who hadn't heard about it.

(_no thanks to Ami, whose glee at all of this had been more and more emphasized every day_)

"So," Shikamaru cut through her inner turmoil again. "About that dinner…"

She contemplated her options. She could either go partying with the other cheerleaders, including Ami, and most likely strangle the latter and dump her corpse on the next flight to Siberia—or she could go with Tenten and _the others_ for ramen, and most likely kill _herself _before the end of the evening.

_Or _she could join two perfectly alright, albeit not very popular, guys for a delicious dinner and actually be able to _enjoy_ it—with no bloodshed done.

"Aa," she answered, and grinned back at him. "It's a date."

* * *

_**2 Hours and 50 Minutes Earlier**_

"Well?"

Ami wasn't the type to be scared.

Or, well, more precisely—she wasn't the type to _show _any fear. The days when Yamanaka Ino could chuck a handful of flowers in her mouth and tell her that she'd become an old hag in a matter of minutes, making her shriek in hysterics, were long gone.

The rule was simple: show no fear to the enemy, and you will win.

And winning was all Ami cared about.

She flicked her purple horsetail nonchalantly, and gave the redhead a long, hard stare. "She wouldn't take it. What was I supposed to do?"

"Perhaps we weren't clear enough, but your mission was to _make _her take it, at all costs," one of the others—the silver-haired guitarist, or, well, _one_ of them—said silkily, as though speaking to a mindless 3-year-old. Ami gritted her teeth.

"But that would've looked weird, wouldn't it? Like, what—I was supposed to force the Coke down her throat? They would've kicked me off the squad!"

"We don't _give a damn_ if you get kicked off the squad, missy," the more dark-skinned Latino-looking one—she thought his name was Kidoumaru, but she wasn't sure—threw back with a raised eyebrow. "We had a deal."

_That's it._ The once purple-haired girl marched forward briskly, jabbing a finger into the latter's chest accusingly. "Look," she snapped, "we _have_ a deal. You guys give me the pills that'll make Yamanaka faint and nauseous all over the place so that she'll be kicked off the team and so that I can take Sasuke-kun away from her, and _I _give them to her. We're on equal ground here, so don't try to make it seem as though _I_'m the inferior one. I'm doing my best, you kn—"

She didn't even get to finish her sentence. In the next couple of seconds, Ami found herself pinned against the wall, the hair tie of her ponytail pressing into the back of her skull as fingers made of what seemed like iron clenched around her neck from behind, making her vision sway and her mind scream, _DANGER! DANGER!_

Well, not that she needed to be told so. The ferocious, wild brown eyes of the redhead from before were boring holes into her head; if there ever was a female Hannibal Lecter, Ami was fairly sure she'd look like Tayuya.

"Listen, you fucker," she hissed as her face blurred from the pain, "I ain't got any time for little whiny bitches like you. You think you're special? We can just get any other jealous loser like you from the team to get to do this job for us. I'm sure people won't even fucking notice that you're gone before it's far too late to save you—who you think you're playing with, brat? You think your little rich daddy's gonna save you from us? You never heard of what Orochimaru-sama is capable of?"

She had. There wasn't a single person in Konoha, not even the beggars on the streets, that hadn't.

Not that _that_ information was going to save her now. All she could do was to whimper and incline the slightest nod, despite the fact that it felt like the bones in her neck would fall off their hinges just by doing so.

"Good." Ami gasped for air as she was thrown off her feet, gently clutching at her the base of her red neck as a bottle of Diet Coke and another package of pills landed before her. "Now get this fucking job done before the concert begins—two pills in the Coke, not more."

She lay on the ground, a pounding ache on the bruise she suspected was forming already; as the steps finally disappeared from her hearing proximity, she snorted incredulously—but quietly, because you never knew who listened. Then, releasing her hair tie to let the fake-blonde hair fall down to shield the bruise from view, she picked up the items from the ground.

"Fuck you," she muttered as she uncorked the bottle. How many pills had Tayuya said now again? Two? Three? Four? Better to just put the whole stuff in, she figured as she dropped a total of four pills, watching as they made a sizzling, hissing noise as they mixed with the liquid before disappearing, as though it had never been put there.

A lot of people claimed Watanabe Ami had no conscience, but she didn't care; whatever made her the winner of this battle was well worth the things she did (_people deserved the things she did against them, anyway_).

There was only one Princess to be unofficially crowned as the Queen and the winner tonight, and if there was one thing Ami had learned from her good-for-nothing rich parents, it was this: losing was _never_ permitted.

* * *

_**2 Hours and 30 Minutes Earlier**_

Sakura had never been one to mind stares.

(_Or well, she once had been—but that was a long time ago, long time as in past-lifetime-when-she-was-still-with-_him-_long-time-ago_)

It was inevitable, as a matter of fact, that she'd be stared at. She had always earned male stares for being known as Ino's _sidekick_, or just walking next to her in town—female stares when she walked with Sasuke and even with Naruto, who, she had to admit, was growing fonder on the eyes of other females ever since he hit adolescence—and ever since _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ and Ino's and Sasuke's relationship had drawn media attention, she had been one of the people to stand in the midst of the spotlight.

Still, there was something remarkably uncomfortable with sitting alone next to an empty seat in the middle of a crowd in a pathetic attempt to blend in and become the receptor for the stares of every single pair of eyes in a 20-meter-radius, as well as hearing the whispers.

_**The**__ Whispers_, she mentally corrected herself dryly,_ with a capital W._

"_Why is _she _here_?"

"—_stole her best friend's boyfriend—_"

"… _but isn't she dating _Naru—"

"_Konoha's top medical apprentice? I'd say top _slut _apprentice…_"

"_Are they here _together?"

"_The nerve of her to play with Sa_—"

Heaving an impatient sigh, she prodded her new pink Sony earphones deeper into her ears in an attempt to drown out the 'Whispers'. It wasn't like it had been unexpected—she had always been hated to begin with for reasons beyond her understanding—but like with the stares, it still didn't stop her from feeling _uncomfortable_.

"_I guess I'll die another day_," Madonna chanted into her speakers as she drummed her fingers along to the beat against her kneecaps. "_It's not my time to go_."

_Speaking of going_, she thought as she avoided the wide-eyed stares of the couple next to her and mainly focused on the cheerleaders getting ready down below, _where _is _Sasuke?_

He had gone to buy refreshments for them both while waiting for the rest of the gang to arrive. The others were on their way—or so it had seemed judging by their most recent text message to her—but Sasuke was still gone, and it didn't take 25 minutes going down a staircase to buy two Cokes.

_Unless…_

Her digits tightened around the cold metal of the pink iPod.

_Unless he went to look for Ino to talk things out._

It made sense, of course. This was _her_ day after all—_her_ cheerleading competition. And _his _concert, rolled into one—just like the way things should be. _Their _day.

She didn't even notice that she had pulled out her cell phone and had already begun typing before she caught herself in the midst of everything, staring at the white screen before her, a single word typed across it (along with the beginning of another)—

_Sasuke, wh_

What was she doing? Why was she getting in the way? Why—

_**I trust him with you**_, Ino's voice echoed in her mind, almost torturously innocent, _**after all, it's not like you're going to fall in love with him or something.**_

Her fingers trembled as she pressed backspace, the screen now showing a single word.

_Sasuke_.

Sasuke.

_**I'll promise to keep my distance**_, her own voice repeated like a mantra.

She had promised.

Even without the promise, she was completely crossing the line. What had she wanted to do? Ask him to turn back? Ask him not to talk things out with his _girlfriend_? To just stay in this mess

(_so that you can never leave, so that we can pretend like everything's alright and like everything's like before)_

with _her_?

What had she expected to happen? What was she _thinking_?

Or was she even thinking at all?

(_oh, but she was, or else she wouldn't have heard all those "you've no right to feel like this", "you're such a selfish person", and all those other things repeating themselves in her mind with _his _voice_)

It all made sense. He had always been a sensible person—surely he had more sense than to sit here with _her_, the cause of this entire mess, on such an important day when his girlfriend is upset and in the greatest need of his support, especially with all these rumors flying about.

(_because that's all it was, wasn't it? Rumors? Because he'd never prefer _her)

And wasn't this what she had aimed for in the beginning? To repair their relationship, to make them happier? To make _her_ happier?

_But what about me_?

She wanted to slap herself the moment the line flew across her mind. How could she even _think _that? She was the one who was guilty in the first place. The one who had put them in this kind of situation. She had had the power to make things different—and she hadn't taken it. It was too late now.

_But…_

What if Sasuke actually wanted _her_? What if he was there now to break up with Ino, to come to her, to—

Sakura felt sorely tempted to strangle herself with her own headphones.

She was angry with Ino, of course. But this wasn't the first time. They had been best friends for almost _ten _years, for crying out loud. A fight now and then was inevitable, especially with their explosive tempers.

But she was crossing the line by thinking thoughts like these. She had thought of all kinds of punishments for Ino as a child whenever they got into fights—dyeing her hair blue, destroy her Barbie Dream Castle, push her into a rain puddle—but she had never done them.

But what was this now? Was she seriously thinking about _doing _this? Or was it just out of anger?

And what if she had _already _crossed the line, leaving it so far behind it was only just a dot in the horizon to her—long, long ago when she first fell in love with Sasuke and her lies first began?

"Sakura?"

The pinkette jumped in her seat, dropping her iPod onto the ground as she flushed a bright pink. The last person she had wanted to see in the midst of her most horrible inner turmoil was _him_, and yet…

(_and yet she couldn't help but feel this relief—perhaps he hadn't gone to see Ino at all, perhaps…_)

"Sasuke, I—"

"I'm not Sasuke."

Her head quirked upwards swiftly as she picked up her iPod, and stared in utter astonishment at the person before her, as her face turned slightly ashen—to be replaced by an offensive frown.

"_You_."

"And I've missed you too, babe," the pale-headed boy sighed as he perched down onto the seat next to her, flinging an arm around her shoulders as he flashed her a sharp-toothed grin.

"Don't_ babe_ me, Suigetsu," she scoffed as she grasped hold of his hand and promptly dropped it onto his own lap.

"Aw, Sakura, you were more fun when you weren't dating the moron," he pouted childishly. "That's why you're dumping me like a hot potato now, isn't it? Fine, have it your way. _You_'re the one missing out on a_ good_ time."

Rolling her jade eyes, she instead asked, "What're you doing here?"

"What do you mean, what am I doing here? This is an open venue, isn't it? Anybody is welcome to come. Besides—" There was a glimmer of something in his eyes that made her feel eerie, something that felt like a bad omen, "—why wouldn't I be here when your _boyfriend _is performing?"

It was _definitely_ a bad omen. "What do you want with Sasuke?" she demanded, eyes narrowed.

"_Sasuke_? I thought your boyfriend was—" Falling in silence, his expression of surprise was quickly replaced by his default smirk of mischief. "Oh, so it _is _true, then..."

"It's not. I just figured he was the one you were looking for," she quickly retorted, cheeks growing hotter. _Smooth, Sakura. Smooth._

"Yeah, whatever you say. Well, now that you mention it—I _am_ looking for Sasuke. Where is the guy, anyway?"

"Tell me what you want with him first."

"You're still stubborn as a mule—but sorry, I don't like spoiling surprises." Rising up from the seat next to her once more, he arched an eyebrow in amusement. "So I guess you'll just have to wait and see. See you around, _babe_."

"Wait, Sui—!"

But he had already begun to walk away, and Sakura was disconcerted to see that their little dialogue had been overheard by quite a few, causing new rumors to fly about in the air. Rising from her chair and following his cue, her feet carried her speedily to her next destination—the Konoha cheerleaders' locker room, where Ino must be.

(_and where _he_ must be, with her, as he should be_)

It was simply because this was an urgent matter she needed to tell him, she thought, as she quickly descended down the stairs of the audience stands towards the locker rooms. Nothing else.

Or at least, that's what she desperately _had to _believe.

* * *

_**2 Hours and 25 Minutes Earlier**_

It had been five minutes since he had left the stands.

_Funny how time passes fast even when you're not having fun_, Sasuke pondered dryly as he impatiently drummed his frozen fingers against the sides of the icy soda cans. "Well?"

"Take it easy, Sasuke-kun," Kabuto chuckled as he shoved his _non-frozen_ fingers into the pockets of his incredibly large, brown hoodie (_bastard_, Sasuke inwardly grumbled), "don't be so hostile. It's been a while since I last saw you. Haven't you missed me at all?"

"As much as Orochimaru would miss being straight," he hissed with a glare, "which I'm sure both of us would know is pretty much zero."

"You really hurt my feelings. And here I thought we could have a strong and wonderful friendship in the springtime of our youth—embracing each other in green jumpsuits in the sunset whilst crying out the most inner thoughts of our soul to be echoed by the mountains…" Kabuto slapped the palm of his hand against his chest in a dramatic gesture. "Oh, and then let the entire world hear our heartfelt words by putting the video on YouTube! Wouldn't that be simply _wonderful_?"

Sasuke looked as enthusiastic to follow his lead as he was to perform Caramelldansen in a banana costume as he gazed at the silver-haired Oto boy in clear disgust, before furrowing his brow in hesitation as he scrutinized the latter's face.

"Lee?" he tried doubtfully, tilting his head slightly to the side as he peeked underneath the silver bangs in search of the slightest sign of a bowl cut.

"What?" retorted Kabuto blankly.

"Nothing. I just thought I saw the last of my resolve not to kill myself fly right out of the window," he muttered with a slight shudder, before he continued; "I'm not even going to _ask _what drugs you're on. Just cut the crap and tell me why you're here already."

"Really, Sasuke-kun, you disappoint me. Here I thought you'd embrace my idea with open arms. Now, if you think about it, that video would have been one of the most viewed videos of the century—"

Sasuke glanced sideways at his wristwatch. _Six minutes_. "Cut the crap, Kabuto," he snarled. "_Now_."

"Grumpy as always, I see. Well, I guess you leave me no options." Heaving a sigh, he pulled out a double-folded piece of paper, extending it to the suspicious Sasuke with his left hand.

"This is…?"

"The schedule for _Hebi_, and the songs that they'll play tonight. I thought you might need it."

Obsidian eyes narrowed in response. "I've no need for something like that."

"Oh, you just might," Kabuto drawled as his lips curled into a sadistic smile, "if the most important person to you _accidentally_ gets poisoned, and we just _happen _to have the antidote."

"You son of a bitch," he hissed as his fingers clenched the cans spasmodically.

"Language, Sasuke-kun," said Kabuto with a mockingly scolding voice as he arched an eyebrow. "After all, we're the only ones who can cure your little girlfriend. Of course, you _could _ask Tsunade-sama—after all, it's not for nothing she's known as the miracle doctor in Japan—but as you know, she's currently in the presence of the Five Kages and the President in an attempt to show them what Konoha and The Academy is capable of, and surely wrecking havoc on such an important day for your fellow citizens—among them your own _clan_—is not one of the things she, or you, wants to show the most powerful people in Japan."

If physical violence had helped the slightest in this situation, Sasuke would've already done such gory things to him, even _Saw_ would seem like a children's play in comparison, but he was forced to let measly words suffice. "_Fuck you_."

"And you probably don't want to be so rude to your potential savior, either," he added with a tiny chuckle. "Thankfully, we only have a small favor to ask of you—to _not_ join _Konoha's Golden Leaf_ tonight, but to join _Hebi_. Surely this is an easy decision to make, when Yamanaka Ino's life is at stake?"

Astonishment flickered in his gaze just for a millisecond, before it settled again. "In other words, you want me to show every single person worth mentioning here tonight—including the President, the Five Kages and my own clan—that I, Uchiha Sasuke, one of the most famous representatives of Fire County and Konoha, is loyal to _Oto _tonight."

"Exactly. Piece of cake, really, if you think about it," Kabuto exclaimed gleefully. "Just sing a couple of songs in front of an audience. It's not like you don't do _that_ all the time. And oh, save a life—your _girlfriend_'s life—too as a bonus. Quite the deal, if you ask me."

_Quite the deal if you want a war_. His gaze dashed to the wristwatch. There was still time, and he was wasting it standing here debating with Kabuto—and himself.

"The time limit is, of course, until the concert—but let me remind you that her condition will grow continually more unstable. And oh, you might want her to watch out for headaches."

If Sasuke had ever felt he hated Kabuto before—which he had, almost with the same fervent passion as Naruto when his ramen was delayed—it was nothing compared to now.

"You know where to find us when you've made the right decision."

* * *

_For every sin, I have to pay_

* * *

_**2 Hours and 10 Minutes Earlier**_

Sakura had once tried martial arts in middle school at the tender age of eleven (at the request of a certain bun-haired Chinese). She knew basic self-defense—put up your hands and arms in front of your face, or the area that you want to protect. Brace yourself for the pain that's coming next, and the possibility of being hit despite trying to protect yourself.

It was a pity that the same thing didn't work for one's heart.

"Aren't you heading in?"

Her head snapped up at the source of the voice—the guard who had been guarding the backdoor to the locker room (the front was crowded with paparazzi, and Sakura had just narrowly dodged them on her way to the backdoor)—in alarm, blinking at him in surprise.

"Uh… yeah," she said uncertainly. "Sure."

She tried to swallow down the lump in her throat, but it was getting increasingly difficult with her mounting thirst. _Now or never, Sakura._

She was going to disturb them. She was going to intercept their sweet moment of privacy in this little secluded locker room, safe from the paparazzi, and ruin everything—their attempt to solve their problems, their relationship, their happiness.

_Her _happiness.

(_the happiness of the one who had been more of a family to her than her own family these past years_)

Again.

_But I've a reason for it,_ she mentally argued against the Ino-like voice in her head. _This is urgent. This isn't about personal matters anymore; there's something going on here besides that. Something that has to do with Oto, and judging from my experience of them, it isn't anything good._

_**You can use your cell phone**_, the Ino-like voice replied icily. _**Text messaging, calling. Even leaving a voicemail. You don't have to show up in **_person_** in front of them, especially when you're the last person **_she _**wants to see before the competition.**_

She didn't even bother coming up with a half-hearted excuse as she inhaled deeply, and opened the door to what would surely be her doom.

Surprise

(_and relief and guilt and happiness and anger and self-loathing and…_)

hit her like a ton of bricks as she scanned the empty locker room, closing the door shut behind her. Naturally, dozens of Louis Vuitton, Ralph Lauren, Dior, Miu Miu and other brands flashed their lavish logos at her from bags, clothes and makeup strewn about everywhere, as though a whirlwind had just swept up every luxurious item from the shopping centers in town and dropped them as a bomb in one single place—so the locker room wasn't _entirely _empty.

But not a single person was there.

Ino hadn't left either, she noticed, as her favorite Gucci bag was just some distance away. Walking towards it, Sakura suddenly felt a longing to the times when Ino first had bought it—back in the days before she started to date Sasuke, when Sakura first believed that he was officially out of her life forever.

And yet, this past month had felt like a dream—a wonderful paradise and a hellish nightmare at the same time. Ups and downs blending in with each other like a stream of praise and curses thrown at her as a nonsensical pattern of words and emotions. Where was she going with all of this? Where were _they_ headed—all of them?

Guilt seemed to eat her from within when the thought of the other blonde she had wronged appeared in her mind. She had constantly been with him—and Sasuke—these past two weeks, yet she had been so distant, so wrapped up in her thoughts and her feelings that she had barely paid him any attention at all.

What was _he_ thinking of her right now? Did she even want to know?

She was brought back to reality by the taste of soda on her tongue. Surprised, she stared at her own hands, which had automatically uncorked one of the two soda bottles in Ino's bag. What was she doing? First she was contemplating stealing her best friend's boyfriend, and now she was actually stealing her _soda_?

_Not that Ino would ever notice with so many cheerleaders around_, she thought hopefully. _She won't even get to know that I was here. If I just quietly slip out—_

"Girls," she heard the slightly nasal voice of her _favorite_ person in the world—namely one certain Watanabe Ami—say with its usual nasty tone, "that last backflip was a total _disaster_."

It could've been seconds. Minutes. All Sakura knew was that her mind was spinning at top speed, and yet, her brain seemed to have collapsed into a state of utter stillness.

_No. __**No**_.

How would she even explain herself? _Hey, Ino, I just came by to see if you were with Sasuke so that I could ruin your moment by telling you that Oto seems to be after your boyfriend's ass, but since you're not, I'm standing here drinking your soda_?

Jade eyes darted about frantically in search of a hiding place. There were two; the shower room, with its transparent glass door—or the toilet she was well aware of having a broken lock, on account of having been here before during Ino's cheerleading contests in the past.

The sound of the steps was getting uncomfortably closer.

"Good afternoon," she heard the guard say with his usual politeness, and Ami's indignant snort—the slightly screechy doorhandle being pulled down, and then—

"God, this place looks like a complete _mess_," she heard Ami's voice complain loudly as Sakura leaned against the once-pink walls of the toilet. She allowed herself to exhale as soundlessly as possible, thanking God that nobody had noticed her slip into the petite space just as they entered the room.

"Well, it's a locker room, Ami—locker rooms _tend _to be messy," Ino's voice remarked dryly, and Sakura could tell she wasn't in the best of moods.

_That means she and Sasuke haven't talked yet_, she realized, and wanted to bang her head against the wall for the mixed glee and guilt that rose to the surface within her, but wisely refrained from doing so.

"So, um… do you guys think we can pull this off?" Yuzuki nervously tried to not-so-subtly change the subject. "The cheering contest, I mean."

"Are you an idiot?" Ami scoffed along with Ino's simultaneous outburst of, "Of course we can!"

An awkward silence followed, during which Sakura could almost _sense_ Ami's and Ino's death glares directed at each other, when the latter blonde suddenly said something that caused Sakura to stiffen. "Sumiko, can you pass me the soda in my bag, please?"

"Sure. The Diet or the non-Diet one?"

_Which one was the one that I drank from?_ Sakura thought in a panic; both of them had been unopened when she first saw them.

"The non-Diet one," she replied defiantly. "Unlike _some_, I'm not worried about getting _fat_."

At Ami's scoff at the statement, the pinkette could tell Ino had said it that way to oppose her; hiding a smile, she reminisced about the days when the two of them would go up against the purple-headed girl together. They had had countless feuds even as children, and as far as Sakura could remember, Ami had _always _hated them—or at least, her—and vice versa.

However, her little train of thoughts was cut short by a thrill of panic at a cheerleader's voice far too close for her liking. "Who's using the toilet? Hurry up, I need to fix my makeup. _Everybody_ who's somebody is watching today, you know."

_Dammit._ She had nowhere left to run.

"Hello? Is anybody in there?"

"Wait, I think the lock is broken. It's stuck on being locked, even though nobody is in there," another voice piped up next to the previous one, and the doorhandle was repetitively pulled on.

_Please don't get in here,_ Sakura mentally chanted and prayed to all gods she could remember from her Social Science class, _please, please, please—_

"Here, let me try fixing it," Ino's voice joined the first two. "If I use one of my hairpins—"

It felt as though a hammer was continually pounding against the inside of Sakura's chest at the speed of light—the same feeling she'd get when she dreamed of being chased by whatever gory villain from the horror movies Naruto forced her to watch. The adrenaline rush from the anxiety, the panic of getting caught, and the fear for what would happen _after_ she got caught—everything was just as clear as in one of her nightmares.

Except that this time around, she wasn't the victim.

"It worked!" Ino exclaimed in glee, the familiar sound of her voice no longer slightly muted by the door between them. "Now you can use the—_Sakura_?!"

She was the villain herself.

_

* * *

_

A time to work, a time to play

* * *

_**2 Hours and 3 Minutes Earlier**_

At more than just one occurrence in our lives, we'll find that there never seems to be enough time to speak your mind. It happens when our mothers come in to yell at us for being on the phone for too long, or when the café we've been sitting in with the Perfect Date is asking us to leave because they're closing. Either way, time catches up with us, sooner or later, even when you want to freeze it by grabbing hold of that be-damned minute hand of the clock and just scream, "_STOP!_"

And during other times, there almost seems to be _too _much time for you to speak. During such circumstances, the phenomenon that occurs is mostly referred to as an 'Awkward Silence'—yes, with the capital A and S, because there's indeed nothing worse than the heavy, tense atmosphere that seems to almost burden you _physically_ and you're frantically (or not) searching for a topic to bring up.

Some of us try to break it. Others try to _prolong _it so that they don't _need_ to speak—by text messaging, for example. Or play around with your fingers or any object in your hands. Straighten your tie or shirt, or just do _anything_ to not have to pay attention to the non-existent conversation.

For Kiba, eating a hot dog was the best way to prolong it.

But as mentioned earlier, sooner or later, time catches up with you.

(Or a talkative loudmouth does.)

_Unfortunately_.

"So, uh…," said Naruto as he tried to balance the three different hot dogs in his hands (his own, Tenten's and Neji's; Hinata was a vegetarian), "I heard that _Paranormal Activity _is good."

The dog-boy made an effort to chew on his food as long as possible, almost like a ruminant cow. "… Okay," he replied at last.

"Um, yeah, I think," he said, throwing a meaningful glance at Kiba, "that Hinata wants to watch it."

At this, the latter had to react by stopping in his tracks and staring at him in blank surprise. "_Hinata _wants to watch it?"

"Yeah!" His sapphire orbs glittered with enthusiasm at the little perk of 'interest' the dog-boy apparently had shown. "And, you know, I've got two tickets for it next Wednesday. I won't be able to go, so maybe you can—"

He started walking again, the little plastic bag of soda cans he had bought for the group bumping slightly against his left knee. "Forget it."

"C'mon! Why not? Are you _scared_?" Naruto tried to provoke him in a challenging tone.

Pinching the bridge of his nose (and almost hitting his eye with the hot dog) to prevent an oncoming headache, Kiba decided to ignore the double meaning of the blonde's last question. "No, but Hinata is. She faints whenever she watches horror movies."

"… Oh. Um, so she's easily frightened?"

"… Yeah."

"But you can just do it like me! Like, when me and Sakura-chan are watching horror movies, if she starts screaming, I throw popcorn in her mouth! Or, if she covers her eyes, I get close to her ear and whisper in this creepy voice, 'I'm right next to you…' That way she won't be scared of the movie!"

"Sakura, the things you must've been going through…," Kiba muttered under his breath.

"Huh? What was that?"

"Nothing."

"Well, uh… there's always that… OH!" Naruto exclaimed, almost knocking a poor old man in the head with the hot dogs. "The amusement park! They've got this new rollercoaster, which is REALLY fast and cool, and it's just—"

"Hinata faints on rollercoasters too."

"Seriously?" He arched an eyebrow in puzzled incredulity at this new discovery. "She's _that_ easily scared?"

"She faints easily."

"… Oh…"

The brunette eyed the hordes of fangirls passing them by as they slowly made their way back to the VIP sector of the crowd, seated right underneath the stand of the Five Kages. _Just a couple hundred meters more to go, Kiba. Just a couple hundred meters…._

"DUCKS!" the blonde suddenly screamed, flailing slightly with his arms as some of the nearby audience chose to look their way instead of the cheering competition in front of them.

"… What?" was all Kiba could inquire blankly.

"Um. Ducks. You're a duck," the blonde clarified in a slightly lower voice (which, needless to say, was still hopelessly loud).

He stared at him in utter speechlessness, before finally retorting, "Seriously, man. Lay off the ramen. I beg of you."

"No! I mean, that is… um… ducks mate for life."

"_Please_," Kiba said slowly, as though not wanting to startle him, "tell me you're not asking me to marry you."

"Wha-NO! _NO_!" Naruto shrieked loudly enough for anybody within a mile-radius to go deaf, "I'm in love with Sakura-chan! Not you! _Never_ you! Are you _crazy_?"

"Isn't that supposed to be _my _line?"

"No! What I'm trying to say is… ducks. They mate for life. And you… _you_, my dear friend, is a duck! And so is Hinata!"

_If there had been a Nobel Prize for being a complete idiot_, Kiba pondered, _it would've been going against nature not letting Naruto win it._ "… _Penguins_ mate for life, moron. Not ducks."

"Uh… they're both birds…?" Naruto smiled hopefully.

"Okay, let me put it this way," the other boy sighed. "You and Sasuke are both humans. Are _you_ two alike?"

"Hell no! Me being like Sasuke would be like Sai getting off his rainbow ride to join Neji in the land of hair products to play guitar while eating tofu on a maple leaf in a pink tutu and an afro wig and singing, '_AMAAAAZIIIINGG GRAAAACEEE_—'"

"I will pretend I did not hear that for the sake of my sanity."

"Man, what's with you these days? You're so stiff!" the blonde wailed. "You're becoming more and more like Sasuke and Neji!..._Wait_." Azure orbs widened in alarm. "You haven't been using Neji's shampoo, have you?"

"Wha—"

"HAVE YOU??"

_Breathe in. Breathe out. Focus on your hot dog, Kiba. FOCUS. It's very tasty and… sausage-y. And ketchup-y. And…_

"_No_," he uttered through gritted teeth, "I haven't."

"YOU'RE LYING!" Naruto exploded, pointing at him accusingly. "YOU HAVE! HAVE YOU ALREADY FORGOTTEN OUR OATH??? NEVER USE NEJI'S SHAMPOO! THERE'S AN ESSENCE OF BASTARD-ITY IN IT! YOU WILL BECOME A _COLD ONE_, JUST LIKE THEM! SOON ENOUGH, YOU'LL GET PALE SKIN AND DARK HAIR AND GO AROUND LIKE A TOTAL EMO ARROGANT ASSHOLE AND NOT WATCH FLINTSTONES WITH ME BECAUSE IT'S NOT 'EDUCATIONAL ENOUGH'! OH MY GOD! ARE YOU GOING TO LEAVE ME AS THE ONLY SANE ONE IN THE GROUP??? _HOW COULD YOU_! I DON'T CARE WHAT THE BASTARDS SAY, FRED FLINTSTONE'S CAR _REALLY _EXISTED, AND YOU AND I BOTH KNOW THAT! YOU _LIAR_!"

"Are you an idio—"

"LIAR, LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE!" the blonde interjected him angrily, waving his hot dog-bearing arm about like a windmill in the middle of a tornado and finally stopping the movement with pointing his hot dog at Kiba's knee. "_INCENDIO_!"

The resulting ketchup fountain squirting out of the hot dog would've put even the Trevi Fountain in Rome to shame; some people in the audience even pulled out their cameras in order to photograph the event. "What the fuck, dude?!"

"…I was trying to set your pants on fire?" Naruto smiled sheepishly.

…_And the winner of the Complete Idiot Nobel Prize is… UZUMAKI NARUTO!_ "You really ARE an idiot," he emphasized as he stared at the blonde in disbelief.

"Hey, it worked in Harry Potter! Besides, your jeans look cool now. You look like you've been stabbed by—"

"A hot dog vendor?" he supplied sarcastically.

"I was going to say a yakuza, but that could work too. Um, by the way, can you ask Hinata out already? I'm running out of ideas to make you do that," Naruto admitted with an apologetic grin.

He exhaled sharply. _Focus on the hot dog. FOCUS._ "I won't ask Hinata out."

"What?!" Naruto exclaimed in obvious outrage. "Why? Don't you _like _her? I mean, she's pretty, smart, nice, fun—"

Kiba wasn't an idiot. He had heard of karma; of past-life wrongdoings that one had to amend in one's current life. And that's exactly why he was wondering whether or not he had murdered Naruto in a past life, and whether or not he'd have to endure this again if he redid the crime.

"I _know _that," he hissed through gritted teeth, unaware that he was squirting more ketchup on his jeans by clamping the hot dog in his hand with a vice-like grip, forming a very interesting pattern on his knee in the shape of a red, dripping lamb.

"What's the problem, then? You like her! She… well, she's in love with you! What more are you waiting for? An opportunity to chase after her in the rain to someone singing, '_please don't leave me_' to confess your feelings?" the blonde cried out.

Silence. Then, "…Have you been watching Korean dramas again?"

"Well, yeah. _You're Beautiful_ is actually sort of—HEY! Don't just change the subject!"

"I won't ask Hinata out. So stop asking _me_ to ask_ her_ out," he concluded as he threw the already long-since ruined hot dog into a nearby trashcan with disgust.

"Why are you being like this, Kiba? You go out on dates with girls all the time! Girls who aren't half as good as Hinata! They aren't even serious about you—_she's_ _in love with you_, dammit!"

_She's in love with you._

The words echoed in Kiba's mind like a scream in an empty room; torturously and repetitively. How long hadn't he wanted to hear those words? How long hadn't he dreamed of the day it'd come true?

And yet, somehow, fate had twisted everything around, and here he was standing like an idiot hearing it from the idiot the words actually applied to, and being yelled at for not responding to feelings he had dreamed of being returned the past few years, feelings that _didn't _exist.

_Feelings that'd _never _exist_, he mentally added as his eyes narrowed into slits surveying the aggravated blonde babbling away before him, _because of this freaking __**idiot**_.

"—maybe she isn't like the girls you normally date, but she's good, she's _better _than them! If you just give her a chance and ask her out just this once, Kiba, it'll be good, I promise—"

_Promise._

How could he promise that? How dared he stand here and say such a thing, that he'd _promise_ everything was going to be perfectly okay and fine and even _good_ on a date with Hinata, during which _she_'d spend her precious time daydreaming about her _Naruto-kun_, while _he_, being the fool he was, was going to stand there and actually _make-believe_ the whole thing into a real date when it actually wasn't?

(_and he'd try, try take that place he knew he'd never reach, try to gain that title he'd never be associated with_)

Or, if he _tried_ to make it into real date, threatened to destroy their friendship forever?

(_because no matter how hard you try, you just can't replace someone in another's heart)_

Something cracked within Kiba.

"Could you STOP saying that?" he snarled in the middle of Naruto's speech, stopping dead in his tracks to glare at the blonde. "Look, the one she is in love with me isn't me. It's—"

It was The End.

Kiba knew it. This was the part where he told the main character guy about the main character girl's feelings, and he'd be confused and then realize his feelings, and they'd run off into a sunset to a cheesy love song and live happily-ever-after. This was the part where Kiba would go to a far-off country to focus on his career, the part where the Secondary Character makes his exit and that'd be the end, or the end for _him_, at least.

But before he could finish his sentence, he was cut across by a voice that almost completely distracted him from his current task at hand—which was doing exactly what his character was meant to do; step out of his way for the Main Couple—a voice that, even if he won the lottery and become a millionaire, got the girl of his dreams and was driving in a Benz along the coastline on a bright summer's day, would send chills down his back.

"Kiba-kun, Naruto-kun," said voice _purred_ as footsteps came to a halt before them, "what a pleasant _surprise_."

Naruto's usually vibrant azure eyes were colder than ice when he replied. "… Orochimaru."

_

* * *

_

I think I'll find another way

* * *

_**1 Hour and 56 Minutes Earlier**_

"Are you a fucking _idiot_?"

It was the understatement of the year to say that things weren't quite going according to the brilliant plan invented by the (self-proclaimed) renowned beauty queen and genius, Watanabe Ami.

The plan had, in her opinion, been brilliant. She'd meet up with Sound Four prior to the cheering contest, and put a couple of pills in a bottle of Coke she'd give to Ino. The blonde would feel nauseous and faint due to the venom, and would withdraw from the contest, making Ami the temporary captain for the team, leading them to a victory _she_ would get the credit for. Sasuke would get the antidote from Sound Four, make her feel better, and be utterly annoyed by how troublesome she was—and that's where Ami would come into the picture as the better and more suited girlfriend.

To sum it up; she'd win, and Yamanaka Ino would _lose_.

It was a simple, and what she originally had thought, _perfect_, plan. She'd have a few of the most dangerous people in Oto, the main enemy of their city, eating from the palm of her hand since they'd be dependent on her to execute the mission—quite the accomplishment, and definitely something Sasuke would appreciate, she thought—and she'd become queen bee, win the cheering contest and Sasuke over in one single move.

Hiding in a dark corner of the yard behind the gym where she was clearly at a disadvantage as the inferior one, and the one put in the most danger, while being insulted by said dangerous people was definitely not part of the plan.

Barely just stifling a shudder, she averted her gaze away from the piercingly sharp hazel eyes of Tayuya and stared at the linoleum floor. "No," she replied in a barely audible mutter.

"Do you even realize how much these _cost_?" the red-head went on in a dangerous snarl as though she hadn't heard Ami's reply at all. "I could abduct you right now and sell you off as a fucking slave, and the money I'd get from it wouldn't even be enough to buy half a fucking pill."

The other girl shivered at the thought. She had heard dodgy rumors about Sound Four before—it wasn't for nothing that they were known as Orochimaru's top lackeys—and knew that they weren't people you messed with. She didn't doubt that if she followed her main instinct right now and talked back to Tayuya, they _could _sell her off as a slave—or even kill her.

The thought of letting Yamanaka Ino win simply because she was out of the picture made her grit her teeth and reluctantly cave into submission. "If it's about money, I can pay up. My dad is the president of the Watanabe Corp., you know."

This, however, only caused Tayuya to snort. "And how do you intend to get money from your _daddy_, fucker? Tell him you got your scrawny whoreass into some trouble with Oto elites?"

Ami's teeth gnawed lightly at her lower lip at this. It was true; she hadn't thought about that. She was used to her father getting her out of trouble no matter what it was—after all, she was the apple of his eye—but this would be a hard nut to crack. He could easily bail her out of being framed for driving around drunk, or being accused of bullying others, but associating and even having a deal with Sound Four wasn't exactly going to make him want to tap-dance in joy.

The largest one in the group, with slightly tanned skin and orange-tinted red hair cut into a Mohawk with two lines of hair on either side of it—who had been eerily quiet and fixating her with quite the creepy stare ever since they had first met—suddenly spoke. "She can always pay with her _body_."

It was obvious what he meant as his eyes traced the outline of her body in her cheerleading uniform. Her urge to hurl was just stifled by Ami's terror at actually having to _do _what he had just insinuated.

His 'teammate', Kidoumaru the Latino guy, seemed to find this extremely hilarious. "You're going to fuck a whore like her?" he laughed, causing the fake-blonde's hands to curl into tight fists to refrain her from the familiar urge of slapping him. "Don't go bitching about it to the rest of us later when you get syphilis and shit like that, man."

"Cut the fucking small talk, Orochimaru-sama is waiting for us," Tayuya growled at them, impatience edging into her constant frown as she turned to Ami again. "Did Yamanaka Ino drink the over-poisoned Diet Coke or not?"

"Actually, I saw that she drank from the other Coke. But both bottles were opened, so I think somebody else drank from the Diet Coke," she concluded with a shrug. _Oh well_. It was just another wannabe-Barbie anorexic off the team for the cheering contest and possibly the next training session, however long that venom's nauseating effects lasted; they had plenty of stand-ins, anyway.

"Whoever drank that Diet Coke is one unlucky bitch," the silver-haired guy she was sure was called Sakon smirked. "Unless she gets that antidote, she's going to freaking die. And even if they get it, the survival rate is only 10 percent—good thing that wasn't Yamanaka Ino, or else Sasuke would've refused to join us if we killed off his little _girlfriend_."

_Die?_

The mere meaning of that one word seemed to knock the air out of her lungs as Ami's eyes widened in shock.

Sure, as much as Ami hated her fellow cheerleaders—especially Ino—with a fervent passion, and had often at times wished they were dead, she hadn't actually meant it. The words had seemed fitting in the context; of course it was natural for somebody who hated someone else to want them to die. But…

_But I don't want this,_ the frantic words registered in her mind. _I didn't want this. They weren't supposed to… I wasn't going to…_

The tables had turned drastically. Ami, perched on top of her throne and worshipped as the new queen bee with Sasuke by her side, had suddenly become the worst thing imaginable.

_A murderer._

_I'm going to be a murderer._

This wasn't a part of the plan. This was _definitely _not a part of the plan.

She was brought back to the now frightening reality once again by Tayuya's voice. "Whatever. Let's just fucking get on with this whole thing already," she said as the entire group started to move away from where Ami still was frozen, her entire body rigid with an unfamiliar emotion she briefly realized was panic.

_What am I going to do? What am I supposed to do?_

To her utmost despair, no fitting answer magically surfaced out of nowhere, all the while Sound Four kept moving farther and farther away.

"Tayuya, you shouldn't swear so much," she could hear the large Mohawk guy say in the midst of her numb state of panic. "It's unfitting for a girl—"

"Shut up, you fucking fatass. Don't think you can talk back at me just so you can fuck your little Konoha _whore_."

"You two, stop fighting and let's go," Kidoumaru interjected the both, causing Ami's panic to hit the roof.

They were really going to leave. _With the antidote_, the antidote that'd only save Yamanaka Ino's life—not the other girl, whoever it was, who had drunk the poison Ami had put in.

She tasted something bitter in her mouth as her stomach seemed to do back-flips in an attempt to make her vomit the little lunch she had devoured prior to the contest (to make her look slim in her cheerleading outfit, naturally)—feeling light-headed, she was fairly sure she was going to faint soon, or at least go into a fit of hysterics.

_I've to stop them first,_ she thought frenetically. It didn't matter how much money they wanted—she _had_ to get the antidote.

As though watching the entire scene unfold from inside of her head while somebody else possessed her, Ami heard herself scream, "WAIT!" as her own legs carried her in a wild run towards the four. She only just registered her own fingers clamping onto Tayuya's wrist as they turned around, everybody besides Tayuya looking mockingly curious at what was going to happen next.

"We need to find out who that poisoned girl was!" she said in one breath, her words clumsily tumbling out of her mouth. "I mean, what if she dies—"

"So _what_ if she dies?"

She visibly blanched at the Sound Four's indifference, before her frustration and frenzy took overhand. Didn't they _understand_? Somebody was going to _die_—

"It'd be your fault anyway, wouldn't it?" Sakon's voice cut through her mental turmoil like a knife, the mere tilt of his lips turning into a mocking smirk enough to make it feel as though somebody just stabbed her. "Wasn't this what you wanted? To have your competition out of the way? Whoever it was, she definitely was after your beloved _Sasuke-kun_."

"But I—no, I didn't mean to—," she sputtered in response. _I didn't want anyone to die!_

"Let my hand go, whore," Tayuya spat in disgust as her cold gaze traveled back to Ami's fingers, trembling as they clung onto the other girl's wrist as though there'd be no tomorrow.

They couldn't leave. That much was for sure. Ami had no idea what that poison was, and even less the antidote. And if she asked other people to help her…

_They'd think of me as a murderer._

It was a dead end. Ami's reign had come to an end before it had even begun, as she fell off the throne she never even was able to reach. Everything was falling apart to pieces—her popularity, her reputation, her chance of getting Sasuke, her _conscience_—

A lot of people claimed Watanabe Ami had no conscience, but she had up until now firmly believed they were wrong. She was only giving people what they deserved—it was their own fault for being ugly, for being stupid, for believing they'd become something they couldn't be—

That they'd _never_ get the chance of trying to be, if she killed them.

_Nobody deserves to die._

"If you want it so badly, you can join your precious soon-to-be-dead bimbo friend in hell," Tayuya hissed, her eyes narrowing to slits as Ami still remained unmoving besides the continuous tremble of her body and with her lips slightly agape in an attempt to think of something

(_anything_)

to say to for the first time save someone besides herself.

"Tayuya!" Jirobou chided her in a slightly alarmed voice. "We haven't been assigned to—"

Kidoumaru, who obviously sensed another fight on its approach as Tayuya opened her mouth once again to come up with an answer, quickly nipped the bud before it was too late. "Let's just go. We're wasting time here."

Looking at her as though she was the lowliest vermin on earth, Tayuya promptly snapped her wrist out of Ami's now limp hold, as the four Oto lackeys made their way back into the gym, their footsteps disappearing out of Ami's hearing vicinity.

"No…," was all she could softly cry out, though it was more an inaudible, horrified murmur than anything else.

Looking down at her extended hands, slowly flipping them upwards

(_the hands that possibly had killed someone_)

the first teardrop to have been shed by her eye since her childhood eyes escaped from one of her mud-brown orbs.

"… what… _what_ have I done…?"

_

* * *

_

_I guess I'll die, another day—  
It's not my time to go…_

_

* * *

_

Guys, I'm so, SO sorry for the terribly slow update, but I've been drowning in a pile of homework, and my life has been utter chaos, be it friendship or love--you know, I'm supposed to be the one WRITING clichés (or trying to avoid to), not LIVING them--so I haven't really had the chance to update. To be entirely honest, I almost forgot about The Boyfriend Test for a while, so I've to thank shai-duck for PMing me about wanting an update, or else I'd have completely forgotten to write at all.

Just remember, every time you guys post a review--or mail, I know a lot of authors hate it when people ask for updates, but as long as you're not being _rude_, I don't mind--leaving feedback to the story, I remember I've actually got people waiting for a new chapter and try to at least write a sentence or two in the coming chapter.

So... about this chapter: this may seem completely random with the action-style writing coming out of nowhere, but if you've really paid attention, the whole Konoha vs. Oto thing in the fic has been building up for a while, and it wasn't for nothing. I've actually got a message that I'm trying to convey with this whole thing too, but it'll be revealed later on. For now, I'll let you guess (if you bother guessing).

As for your feedback for what I wrote in my A/N last chapter: THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!! I think you misunderstood me, though. I wasn't talking about slow UPDATES, I was talking about the slow progress of the story. But thanks anyhow, I really appreciated what you wrote.

Now, to my Question for the Chapter thing I've apparently made into a habit...

How many of you like NaruHina (in this story) as opposed to KibaHina (still, in this fic, not in general)? I'm sort of curious, since I've been recieving a lot of comments on both couples.

As for the "I-might-or-might-not-kill-off-a-main-character" thing I've got going on... don't rest too assured about whatever you assume now. You know, Oto is rather untrustable (interpret it however you wish--that can be both good or bad)... and so am I as an author.

I want to thank for all the reviews, and I want mooooooreee n.n I love reading your reviews!!

P.S. For all those who say that there's barely any SasuSaku in this fic and how it seems one-sided... I've had plenty of moments that you just need to delve deeper in. Anyhow, major SasuSaku coming up next chapter if you can wait :)


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